World shares were mixed on Wednesday following losses on Wall Street, while oil prices gained more than 3% on uncertainties over when the war in Iran will end.
The futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged less than 0.1% higher.
The Federal Reserve was expected to keep its key interest rate unchanged at 3.6% as it wraps up a policy meeting later Wednesday. Most policymakers believe at that level, the rate can still cool inflation by slowing borrowing and spending, but not so much that it will drag down hiring or raise unemployment.
In early European trading, Britain’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.6% to 10,269.06. Germany’s DAX traded 0.3% lower at 23,958.39, while France’s CAC 40 dropped 0.6% to 8,054.38.
Markets in Japan were closed for a holiday.
Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.8% to 6,690.90 and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 1.7% to 26,111.84. The Shanghai Composite index rose 0.7% to 4,107.51.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.3% to 8,687.00.
Taiwan’s Taiex lost 0.6%, and India’s Sensex gained 0.9%.
The price of a barrel of Brent crude oil to be delivered in June rose 3.1% to $114.70 early Wednesday. Brent to be delivered in July was also up 3%, at $107.61. Brent oil was trading around $70 per barrel before the war began in late February.
