Journal De Bruxelles - Stocks tick up with eyes on earnings, US tariff deadline

The US president's claim that Washington was "very close to a deal" to extend a China tariffs truce provided some optimism.

But duties on dozens of economies were due to take effect on Thursday, and Trump also warned that he would soon hit the pharmaceutical and semiconductor sectors.

Oil prices rallied thanks to Trump's threat to impose higher tariffs on India over its purchase of Russian crude.

Kathleen Brooks, research director at trading group XTB, said "decent" corporate results in the United States and Europe were overshadowing concerns about a US economic slowdown and the impact of "Trump's continuing obsession with tariffs".

Paris rose in early afternoon deals, while Frankfurt was flat after data showed German industrial orders unexpectedly fell in June.

London advanced ahead of the Bank of England's expected decision to cut its key interest rate Thursday.

Markets kept an eye on US tariff developments, with several countries still racing to strike deals before Thursday's levies kick in.

European investors are "in a relatively confident mood following a US-EU trade deal that eases concerns around tomorrow's tariff headline", said Joshua Mahony, chief market analyst at Rostro trading group.

He added that markets are "heavily focused on the likes of India and Switzerland", who are yet to reach a final agreement with Washington.

In his latest salvo, Trump told CNBC he was looking at hitting pharmaceuticals with tolls that eventually reach 250 percent, while semiconductors were also in the firing line.

However, he signalled a more positive tone on talks with China, which analysts said helped boost Asian stocks.

Tokyo and Shanghai closed higher, while Hong Kong closed flat.

Concerns about the health of the world's top economy weighed on sentiment after another batch of disappointing US economic data.

A closely watched index of services activity showed it had barely grown in July as companies contended with weaker hiring conditions and rising prices.

The news came after Friday's jobs data revealed far fewer US jobs were created than expected in May, June and July.

In company news, shares in Danish giant Novo Nordisk fell more than two percent despite a sharp rise in second-quarter net profit as rising competition is hitting sales of its diabetes and obesity treatments Ozempic and Wegovy in the United States.

In London, Swiss mining and commodity giant Glencore shed four percent as it posted widening first-half losses on falling coal prices, US tariffs and Middle East tensions.

In the United States, Disney lifted its full-year profit forecast after reporting higher quarterly profits as it added added 1.8 million subscribers to its streaming platform.

- Key figures at around 1100 GMT -

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.2 percent at 9,161.53 points

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.2 percent at 7,635.97

Frankfurt - DAX: FLAT at 23,839.31

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.6 percent at 40,794.86 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: FLAT at 24,910.63 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 3,633.99 (close)

New York - Dow: DOWN 0.1 percent at 44,111.74 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1602 from $1.1582 on Tuesday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3315 from $1.3294

Dollar/yen: UP at 147.63 yen from 147.55 yen

Euro/pound: UP at 87.14 pence from 87.01 pence

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 1.6 percent at $68.72 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.7 percent at $66.25 per barrel

S.Vandenberghe--JdB