- O'Rourke strikes early for Kiwis as Sri Lanka trail by three
- Deep takes two as Bangladesh totter in reply to India's 376
- Israel pounds Lebanon's Hezbollah after device blasts
- Revolution or mirage? Controversy surrounds new Alzheimer's drugs
- Ashwin's 113 powers India to 376 in Bangladesh Test
- Biden opens home to 'Quad' leaders for farewell summit
- Sally Rooney returns with 30-something questions
- Wallabies sense 'massive' chance to upset All Blacks
- Taiwan questions two in probe into Hezbollah pagers
- Viral Korean Olympic shooter scores first acting role as assassin
- Farrell set for 'challenge' of downing Bordeaux in Top 14
- Springbok Etzebeth diverts attention from looming caps record
- Inter on a high ahead of Milan derby as Napoli face Juve test
- Bank of Japan leaves key interest rate unchanged
- Arnold quits after six years in charge of Australia
- Asian markets track Wall Street record to extend global rally
- Guirassy and Anton to return to Stuttgart with new side Dortmund
- Marseille bidding to continue 'almost perfect' Ligue 1 start
- Arnold quits as coach of Australia men's football team
- Harris and Oprah hold star-studded US election rally
- Allies to remember failed WWII parachute operation
- Perez leading new-look Villarreal charge against leaders Barca
- Man City face Arsenal in Premier League title showdown, Postecoglou under pressure
- Fake celebrity endorsements, snubs plague US presidential race
- Documentary brings Argentine 'death flights' to the big screen
- Strike shows challenge to Boeing 'reset' of labor relations
- World leaders to gather at UN as crises grow and conflicts rage
- How plastic pollution poses challenge for Canada marine conservation
- Scientists track plastic waste in pristine Canada marine park
- South Africa's Buhai grabs LPGA Queen City lead
- Japan inflation firms to 2.8% ahead of BoJ rate decision
- Russia's Kadyrov accuses Musk of 'remotely disabling' his Cybertruck
- Titan sub had to abort a dive days before fatal implosion: testimony
- Ohtani makes MLB history with first 50-homer, 50-steal season
- Ohtani eyes MLB history after surpassing 50 stolen bases, 49 homers
- Ohtani eyes MLB history after surpassing 50 stolen bases
- Barca downed by Monaco as Arsenal held in Champions League stalemate
- Head's 'good night at office' after century seals win over England
- Dubois seeks legitimacy with Joshua scalp
- Rate cut could lift consumer spirits before US elections
- Last-gasp Gimenez strike sends Atletico past Leipzig
- Barca stumble at Monaco after early red card
- Raya heroics save Arsenal in Champions League opener at Atalanta
- Cathay Airbus engine fire linked to cleaning: EU regulator
- Guardians beat Twins to secure MLB playoff berth
- Jihadist attack in Mali capital killed more than 70: security sources
- Alonso hails 'efficient' Leverkusen after Feyenoord rout
- Head's hundred seals Australia win over England in 1st ODI
- Ex-Man United striker Anthony Martial joins AEK Athens
- NFL unbeatens meet as Texans visit Vikings, Steelers host Chargers
Stocks mixed, oil higher as markets monitor Ukraine
US stocks ended mixed Wednesday while oil prices rallied as markets assessed skepticism over Russia's latest statements on Ukraine and Federal Reserve minutes that contained no major surprises.
Wall Street equities were solidly negative just ahead of the afternoon release of the Fed minutes, which showed central bankers favoring a more aggressive pace of interest rate hikes compared with the last monetary tightening cycle.
Still, investors were already aware of that sentiment at the Fed, based on earlier comments from officials, said Tom Cahill of Ventura Wealth Management.
"There was concern that perhaps there could have been some information in there that the market was not already aware of," Cahill said, adding that stocks changed direction in relief.
The broad-based S&P 500, which had dropped nearly one percent at session lows, finished slightly higher, while the other two major indices ended only marginally lower.
Earlier, European equity markets finished lower as markets digested comments from western leaders questioning Russian statements that troops had pulled back from the Ukraine border.
"So far we do not see any sign of de-escalation on the ground; no withdrawals of troops or equipment," said NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, adding that the alliance will shore up its eastern defenses with forward deployments in member states bordering Ukraine.
The uncertainty over Russia has also kept the oil market on guard, pushing prices to their highest level since 2014 as some experts discuss the possibility of oil prices hitting $100 a barrel, less than $7 above their current level.
In other economic news, US retail sales jumped more than expected in January, while industrial production also came in unexpectedly strong.
But UK annual inflation has hit the highest level since 1992, official data showed Wednesday, adding pressure to the cost of living and on the Bank of England to keep raising rates.
Among individual companies, Airbnb jumped 3.7 percent as the home rental company reported better-than-expected results and said strong bookings indicated minimal impact from the latest Covid-19 wave.
But ViacomCBS plunged 17.8 percent after disappointing earnings that underscored the heavy spending associated with launching its streaming services.
- Key figures around 2140 GMT -
New York - Dow: DOWN 0.2 percent at 34,934.27 (close)
New York - S&P 500: UP 0.1 percent at 4,475.01 (close)
New York - Nasdaq: DOWN 0.1 percent at 14,124.09 (close)
London - FTSE 100: DOWN less than 0.1 percent at 7,603.78 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.3 percent at 15,370.30 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.2 percent at 6,964.98 (close)
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.2 percent at 4,137.22 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 2.2 percent at 27,460.40 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 1.5 percent at 24,718.90 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.6 percent at 3,465.83 (close)
Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.4 percent at $94.81 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.7 percent at $93.66 per barrel
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1377 from $1.1359 late Tuesday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3584 from $1.3538
Euro/pound: DOWN at 83.72 pence from 83.88 pence
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 115.46 yen from 115.61 yen
burs-jmb/cs
E.Schubert--BTB