- Flash flooding kills three in northern Thailand
- Kaur leads India to victory over Pakistan in Women's T20 World Cup
- Juventus held by Cagliari after late penalty drama
- In France's Marseille, teen 'stabbed 50 times' then burned alive
- Ruthless Gauff beats Muchova in straight sets to win China Open
- India restrict Pakistan to 105-8 in Women's T20 World Cup
- England target repeat of Pakistan Test whitewash
- Penrith Panthers win fourth straight NRL title after downing Storm
- Weary Sinner happy for day off after battling into Shanghai last 16
- Pakistan's Masood warns England still a force without Stokes
- Madrid's Carvajal to miss several months after serious knee injury
- Two elephants die in flash flooding in northern Thailand
- Sabalenka targets world number one and Wuhan hat-trick
- Tunisia votes with Saied set for re-election
- Bagnaia sets 'example' with Japan MotoGP win to cut gap on Martin
- Intense Israeli bombing rocks Beirut ahead of war anniversary
- Mozambique vote: no suspense but some disillusion
- Austrian rapper channels anti-racist rage in Romani hip-hop songs
- Ohtani magic powers Dodgers over Padres in MLB playoff thriller
- Five of the best: Pakistan-England Test thrillers
- Man sets arm on fire as marches across US mark Gaza war anniversary
- Vietnam's young coffee entrepreneurs brew up a revolution
- Trump rallies at site of failed assassination: 'Never quit'
- Too hot by day, Dubai's floodlit beaches are packed at night
- Is music finally reckoning with #MeToo?
- Fans hail Trump's 'guts' as he returns to site of rally shooting
- Lebanon state media says Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Miami on track for MLS record points after win in Toronto
- Monaco take top spot in Ligue 1 with win at Rennes
- Madrid beat Villarreal to level Liga leaders Barca
- Thuram treble fires Inter past Torino and up to second
- 'Fight': defiant Trump jets in to site of rally shooting
- Mexico City's new mayor sworn in with pledges on water, housing
- Israel on alert ahead of Hamas attack anniversary
- Guardians maul Tigers in MLB playoff series opener
- Macron criticises Israel on Gaza, Lebanon operations
- French rugby player whistled but 'serene' on return amid ongoing rape case
- Retegui hat-trick fires five-star Atalanta to hammering of Genoa
- Heavyweights Australia, England off to World Cup winning starts
- Visiting UN refugee agency chief decries 'terrible crisis' in Lebanon
- Spinners come to party as England defeat Bangladesh at T20 World Cup
- Search continues for missing in deadly Bosnia floods
- Man City sink Fulham to get title bid back on track
- France's Auradou whistled on Pau return in Perpignan loss amid ongoing rape case
- A 'forgotten' valley in storm-hit North Carolina, desperate for help
- Arsenal hit back in style after Southampton scare
- Hezbollah heir apparent Safieddine out of contact after strikes
- Liverpool stay top of Premier League as Arsenal, Man City win
- In dank Tour of Emilia, Pogacar shines in rainbow jersey
- DR Congo launches mpox vaccination drive, hoping to curb outbreak
Stocks diverge, ruble slides tracking economic unrest
Europe's top stock markets rose Thursday after a mixed Asian showing, as traders assessed chances of a global recession in the wake of runaway inflation.
Analysts warn that interest rate rises by central banks aimed at curbing the highest consumer price rises in decades could push the world economy into a downturn.
Bucking the trend on borrowing costs however, Russia's central bank on Thursday slashed its key interest rate following an emergency meeting, as authorities seek to rein in the ruble which has surged in value following the invasion of Ukraine.
The ruble, which Wednesday hit a seven-year dollar high, was down nearly three percent after Russia cut its interest rate to 11 percent from 14.
The ruble has been buoyed by capital controls and high energy prices amid the Ukraine war.
In the United States, central bankers stressed their "strong commitment and determination" to bring raging inflation under control via further large interest rate increases, according to the minutes of the latest policy meeting released Wednesday.
With US inflation rising at the fastest pace in nearly four decades, the Fed's policy committee early this month hiked the key rate by a half point -- the biggest increase since 2000.
Most members said similar increases "would likely be appropriate at the next couple of meetings", according to the minutes.
"The Fed's minutes were hawkish but... with policymakers sounding optimistic and in control," noted Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor.
Across Asia on Thursday, stock markets were mixed after Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's warning that the world's number two economy was in some ways worse off now than during the early days of the pandemic.
It comes as China persists with a zero-Covid policy to eradicate the fast-spreading Omicron virus variant.
The economic agony caused by lockdowns and other strict containment measures has hammered growth across China and knocked global supply chains.
Recent economic data has shown that a series of pledges by Beijing to kickstart growth has essentially fallen flat owing to a lack of concrete action, while analysts said the easing of the Covid policy was the only thing investors wanted to see.
There is a general feeling among commentators that China's economic growth will fall well short of the government's target this year.
- Key figures at around 1030 GMT -
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 7,533.65 points
Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.6 percent at 14,088.70
Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.7 percent at 6,342.31
EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.6 percent at 3,698.83
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.3 percent at 26,604.84 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.3 percent at 20,116.20 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 3,123.11 (close)
New York - Dow: UP 0.6 percent at 32,120.28 (close)
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0714 from $1.0685 on Wednesday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2613 from $1.2579
Euro/pound: UP at 84.94 pence from 84.89 pence
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 126.69 yen from 127.26 yen
Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.7 percent at $114.86 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.9 percent at $111.31 per barrel
A.Seabra--PC