Stock markets rally on earnings, rate cut hopes and stimulus

Global stocks pushed higher on Wednesday on a mix of positive earnings reports, rate cut hopes and stimulus measures.

The yen jumped against the dollar after Bank of Japan governor Kazuo Ueda stoked expectations it will move away from ultra-loose monetary policy.

Wall Street's three main indices pushed higher, with both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite pushing further into record territory, with sentiment boosted by Netflix's earnings which were released on Tuesday after the market close.

Shares in Netflix jumped more than 13 percent, with investors pleased that the streaming service added 13 million subscribers in the final three months of last year despite price hikes.

Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare said "the stock market has been greeted by a trifecta that seems to always pay off: better-than-expected growth from a leading growth company, lower Treasury yields, and policy stimulus from a major central bank."

Earlier on Wednesday the People's Bank of China (PBoC) said it would next month lower the amount of cash banks must keep in reserve as it looks to ramp up lending to help kick-start the stuttering economy.

That helped Hong Kong stocks rise more than three percent, building on the previous day's gains of more than two percent.

Sentiment was also boosted by reports Alibaba's co-founders had bought huge stakes in the firm.

The Hang Seng's rise was fuelled by a 7.3 percent surge in Alibaba on news that Jack Ma and Joseph Tsai had bought about $200 million worth of shares between them.

'Good news?'

In Europe, Frankfurt and Paris were showing strong gains after data showed eurozone business activity fell in January for the eighth straight month, but the rate of decline slowed from December, a key survey showed.

The HCOB flash eurozone purchasing managers' index (PMI) published by S&P Global registered a figure of 47.9 in January from 47.6 in December. A figure below 50 indicates contraction.

In France, manufacturing and services sectors recorded steepening contractions as output fell at the sharpest rate since September. Business activity also slumped at a faster rate in Germany, the bloc's biggest economy.

"A bad news story is often more powerful than a good news story," noted Kathleen Brooks, research director at trading firm XTB.

"If the eurozone economy is facing a recession this year, as many expect, then the ECB can ride to the rescue, and they have room to cut interest rates."

London's benchmark FTSE 100 index also rose, but less aggressively than in the neighbouring eurozone approaching the mid-way mark.

UK business activity hit a seven-month high in January as a stronger service sector helped counteract supply disruption in the Red Sea.

S&P Global's flash UK PMI index rose to 52.5 in January from 52.1 in December. However, manufacturers saw production slump.

Oil prices rose amid further missile attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, hopes of higher Chinese demand, and an unexpected fall in US oil stocks.

"Today has seen prices edge higher on hopes that the new measures announced by China will provide an uplift on the demand side," said Michael Hewson at CMC Markets.

Key figures around 1630 GMT

New York - Dow: UP 0.4 percent at 38,042.42 points

New York - S&P 500: UP 0.6 percent at 4,894.39

New York - Nasdaq Composite: UP 0.9 percent at 15,566.80

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.6 percent at 7,527.67 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.9 percent at 7,455.64 (close)

Frankfurt - DAX: UP 1.6 percent at 16,889.92 (close)

EURO STOXX 50: UP 2.2 percent at 4,564.11 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.8 percent at 36,226.48 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 3.6 percent at 15,899.87 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: UP 1.8 percent at 2,820.77 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0903 from $1.0854 on Tuesday

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 147.32 yen from 148.35 yen

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2746 from $1.2687

Euro/pound: DOWN at 85.52 pence from 85.55 pence

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.3 percent at $75.33 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.9 percent at $80.25 per barrel