Summary:
World stocks dropped on Wednesday as U.S. debt ceiling talks dragged on without resolution, stoking a general malaise in markets that saw the dollar hold around recent highs, dragging gold lower.
World stocks dropped on Wednesday as U.S. debt ceiling talks dragged on without resolution, stoking a general malaise in markets that saw the dollar hold around recent highs, dragging gold lower.
Europe's benchmark STOXX index fell 1.8% to a 1-1/2-month low as luxury stocks fell 1.7% to a seven-week low as a sell-off in the sector continued.
But Crude Oil prices bucked the downtrend and kept rising, after a warning from the Saudi energy minister to speculators that raised the prospect of further OPEC+ output cuts.
Commodities
Oil prices rose 2% after the EIA said U.S. crude inventories posted a massive surprise weekly drawdown of 12.5 million barrels to 455.2 million barrels, the EIA said. Analysts had expected an 800,000-barrel rise.
The U.S. Memorial Day holiday on May 29 marks the beginning of the peak summer travel season and higher fuel demand.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia's energy minister said short-sellers betting oil prices will fall should "watch out" for pain.
Forex
The dollar hit a fresh two-month high against a basket of peers, bolstered by recent signs of a resilient U.S. economy and debt ceiling jitters.
The New Zealand dollar dropped 2.3% after the Reserve Bank wrong-footed markets by keeping its forecast for the terminal rate at 5.5%, having hiked by a quarter point to that level.
The pound dropped to a five-week low against the dollar of $1.2358, after data showed British inflation slowed by much less than markets had been expecting.
Higher inflation, leading to higher-for-longer Bank of England rates, had supported the pound in recent months but that relationship is now starting to reverse.
The South African rand erased early gains on Thursday, extending December's weakness, but could rally, according to the options market.
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