Stocks mostly rise as OPEC+ delay hits oil prices

Wall Street stocks resumed their upward climb Wednesday, while oil prices dropped with traders interpreting a delay to an OPEC+ summit as a sign of possible discord.

A statement announcing a delay to 30 November of a planned summit of the 13-member OPEC group led by Saudi Arabia and their 10 partners led by Russia did not provide any explanation. 

The oil exporters are due to decide on their output policy amid slumping crude prices and weak crude demand as China's post-Covid rebound stutters and Europe and the United States confront slowing economies.

The current output strategy by OPEC+ that saw nine members led by Riyadh cut production to boost prices has failed to bring about lasting recovery.

Oil prices initially tumbled following the announcement of the delay, but finished the day only modestly lower.

"The delay of the meeting has sent prices lower because it increases the risk of the Saudis removing their additional voluntary cuts to the tune of one million barrels per day that has been in place since July," said City Index and FOREX.com analyst Fawad Razaqzada. 

Some analysts have pointed to possible discord between top oil exporter Saudi Arabia — which has pushed for production cuts to support prices — and Russia.

In equities trading, Wall Street's three main indices resumed an upward climb after Tuesday's drop. 

Investors were cheered by strong results from artificial intelligence player Nvidia.

Sentiment also won a partial boost after Israel and Hamas announced a deal allowing at least 50 hostages and scores of Palestinian prisoners to be freed while offering besieged Gaza residents a four-day truce after weeks of all-out war.

Stocks have risen with few pauses since late October amid expectations that the Federal Reserve will not hike interest rates further.

The yield on the 10-year US Treasury note fell further on Wednesday.

In Europe, Frankfurt and Paris stocks closed with gains. 

But London dipped despite the announcement of measures by the UK government to boost the nation's ailing economy as updated forecasts cut the growth outlook while predicting inflation would remain higher for longer.

Asian equity indices diverged as traders tracked a tepid lead from Wall Street following meeting minutes showing Fed officials were inclined to keep interest rates elevated for "some time" in order to tame inflation.