Markets have volatile afternoon as US releases inflation data

A volatile afternoon in the Irish markets resulted in weak results on Wednesday for some of the larger companies such as Kerry Group and Bank of Ireland as markets reacted to US inflation data.
Some of the larger companies on the Irish market had a weaker day on Wednesday with Kerry Group falling 3.3 per cent to €92.90 a share.
Meanwhile, Bank of Ireland fell 1.5 per cent to €9.76 a share. Banking stocks fell overall on the US releasing its 2.5 per cent inflation figure for August but regained some ground by the end of the day.
Ryanair fell 0.20 per cent to €15.77, a weaker result than its airline peers. Food company Glanbia dropped marginally by 0.5 per cent to €16.11. Kingspan rose by 0.3 per cent to €77.15. Glenveagh and Cairn Homes were flat on the day staying at €1.45 and €1.84 a share, respectively.
The UK’s benchmark FTSE 100 stock index ended lower on Wednesday, led by a decline in Rentokil shares after the pest control company warned on North America weakness, while investors assessed the latest US inflation numbers.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 was down 0.2 per cent, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 lost 0.6 per cent.
Rentokil Initial issued its third warning of lower annual profit after weaker-than-expected sales in its largest market North America, sending shares of the pest control company down by as much as 20 per cent.
The company also announced a cut of an undisclosed number of jobs in its US workforce to address cost overruns. The broader industrial support services stocks led sectoral declines with a 3.4 per cent loss.
Rate-sensitive homebuilders slipped 0.9 per cent in the UK.
Meanwhile, data showed Britain’s economic production grew by less than expected in month-on-month terms in July, showing no change after zero growth in June.
European stocks reversed earlier tech-driven gains as an uneven inflation report sent US stocks lower. In Europe, Eurostoxx finished down 0.4 per cent.
The CaC 40 ended 0.24 per cent lower for the day and the Dax was down 0.89 per cent at the close.
Wall Street’s main indexes fell on Wednesday after the latest inflation numbers hit expectations of a bigger interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve, while odds of Democrat Kamala Harris winning the US presidency rose following a televised debate.
Consumer prices in the US rose slightly in August, but underlying inflation remained sticky, which could discourage the Fed from delivering a half-point interest rate cut next week.
The consumer price index (CPI) increased 0.2 per cent last month after climbing 0.2 per cent in July, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said.
The core figure, excluding volatile food and energy components, rose 0.3 per cent on a monthly basis against forecasts of a 0.2 per cent rise. Traders now see an 85 per cent chance of the Fed cutting interest rates by 25 basis points, according to CME’s FedWatch.
All 11 major S&P sectors were trading lower, with financials the worst hit, down 2 per cent.
Market sentiment was also driven by political developments after Harris put her Republican rival Donald Trump on the defensive in a combative presidential debate on Tuesday.