World shares mostly rise as a cut to US interest rates next week looks
more certain
[September 12, 2025] By
TERESA CEROJANO
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — World shares mostly rose on Friday, tracking
Wall Street's record-setting run the previous day after a mixed set of
U.S. data bolstered expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut
interest rates to boost the economy.
European shares were mixed in early trading after opening higher.
Germany's DAX edged down 0.3% to 23,628.56. The CAC 40 in Paris fell
0.5% to 7,784.93. Britain's FTSE 100 added nearly 0.3% to 9,323.66.
In U.S. futures trading, the S&P 500 slid 0.2% while that for the Dow
Jones Industrial Average shed nearly 0.3%.
Japan's Nikkei 225 closed 0.9% higher to 44,768.12, with Japanese stocks
hitting fresh records. Shares in semiconductor company Tokyo Electron,
Sony Group and Fast Retailing were among the movers.
In Chinese markets, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 1.2% to 26,388.16.
Tech shares led gainers on AI optimism, while property stocks climbed as
Beijing moves to help cover unpaid bills of local governments. The
Shanghai Composite index slipped 0.1% to 3,870.60.
In Seoul, the Kospi climbed 1.5% to 3,395.54 while Australia's S&P/ASX
200 added 0.7% to 8,864.90. India's BSE Sensex rose 0.5% while Taiwan's
Taiex was up 1%.
“What’s moving markets now isn’t just another rally — it’s the
unmistakable shift of a dovish Fed tide, the kind that doesn’t rise in
isolation but swells across oceans, lifting virtually every boat in
every harbour,” Stephen Inness of SPI Asset Management said in a market
commentary.
Wall Street’s record-setting run kept rolling Thursday, and stocks
climbed after a mixed set of U.S. data kept the path clear for the
Federal Reserve to cut interest rates to boost the economy.
The S&P 500 rose 0.8% and set an all-time high for the third straight
day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 617 points, or 1.4%, and
the Nasdaq composite gained 0.7%. Both also hit records.
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A dealer watches computer monitors at a dealing room of Hana Bank in
Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Sept. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
 Treasury yields eased in the bond
market following the economic reports, which were some of the final
data releases left that could sway the Federal Reserve’s thinking
before its meeting next week. The unanimous expectation on Wall
Street is that it will cut its main interest rate for the first time
this year.
The hope on Wall Street has been for a slowdown, but a precisely
measured one. The job market has to be weak enough to get the Fed to
cut interest rates, which can give a kickstart to the economy and to
prices for investments, but not so much that it causes a recession.
The Fed has been hesitant to cut interest rates throughout 2025
because of the threat that President Donald Trump’s tariffs could
make inflation worse. Lower interest rates can push inflation even
higher.
A report on inflation Thursday showed that prices are continuing to
rise faster for U.S. households than the Fed's 2% target, but no
more than economists expected. Consumers paid prices for food,
gasoline and other costs of living that were 2.9% higher in August
than a year earlier, a slight acceleration from July’s 2.7%
inflation rate.
Traders believe the Fed will see the slowing job market as the
bigger problem than inflation.
Stocks of companies that could benefit from lower interest rates
rallied on Wall Street, including owners of real estate and
homebuilders.
In other dealings on Friday, benchmark U.S. crude shed 12 cents to
$62.25 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, slipped
4 cents to $66.33 per barrel.
The U.S. dollar rose to 147.92 yen from 147.15 yen. The euro slid to
$1.1716 from $1.1740.
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