European Stocks Rise As Recovery Hopes Offset Second Wave Fears

KEY POINTS

Asian investors leary as signs of recovery offset by fears of second wave
Top economy shows retails sales sored in May
Jerome Powell say full recovery unlikely

European stock markets extended gains Wednesday, as traders weighed coronavirus treatment and economic recovery hopes against fears of a second wave of COVID-19 infection.

Paris climbed 1.0 percent, while London and Frankfurt posted smaller gains.

Wall Street stocks finished mostly lower following a choppy session, with analysts citing worries about excessive equity valuation.

In Asia, Hong Kong closed up 0.6 percent but Tokyo fell 0.6 percent.

Oil prices retreated and the dollar was mixed against its main rivals.

"European equity markets were showing respectable gains for much of the session but trading ranges were small as there wasn't much in terms of news flow to inspire traders," said CMC Markets analyst David Madden.

Madden said investors were heartened by a clinical trial showing that dexamethasone -- a low-dose steroid -- was an effective treatment for coronavirus.

The lackluster session in New York came after Tuesday's rally in which major indices gained around two percent following surprisingly good retail sales data and a positive clinical study of a coronavirus treatment.

But investors have become skeptical of the market's buoyancy, weighing a still-weak economic picture against continued pledges for additional support from the Federal Reserve that are reassuring but also underscore the vulnerability of the economy, said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare.

The "market has made a big run in a short amount of time in the face of a really tough economic climate," O'Hare said, adding indices are "due for a cooling-off period."

O'Hare said a catalyst for the late selling was an interview with investor Jeremy Grantham who warned on CNBC that the US is forming a stock bubble.

Investors are also monitoring disturbing coronavirus trends in several US states, including Florida and Texas, as well as a new outbreak in China and rising deaths in Brazil and India.

Aside from the coronavirus, investors were tracking developments on the Korean peninsula after the North blew up an inter-Korean liaison office on its side of the border Tuesday.

On Wednesday, Pyongyang threatened to bolster its military presence in and around the Demilitarized Zone and rejected an offer from South Korean President Moon Jae-in to send envoys for talks.