Investing.com - The Australian stock market was up by 0.2% after the first 10 minutes of Wednesday's trade. This comes despite a mixed closing in New York, where the tech sector was buoyed by gains from Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA), lifting the Nasdaq Composite.
The US 10-year yield dipped below 4.2% following the release of data that indicated a drop in US job openings to a two-year low in October. This could potentially signal a slowdown in the labor market, a factor the Federal Reserve has been closely monitoring.
In the latest financial developments, the Australian dollar has seen a slight dip, falling by 1% to stand at 65.52 US cents. On a brighter note, the cryptocurrency market experienced a surge, with Bitcoin recording a 4.7% increase to hit $US43,811 as of 8.30 am AEDT.
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Over on Wall Street, the markets closed with mixed results. The Dow Jones Industrial Average recorded a minor drop of 0.2%, while the S&P 500 saw a marginal decline of 0.06%. However, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite managed to buck the trend, closing with a 0.3% gain.
In the New York market, mining companies BHP (ASX:BHP) and Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO) saw their shares fall by 0.6% and 0.8% respectively, while software company Atlassian saw a decline of 1.9%. In contrast, several major tech firms enjoyed a fruitful day, with Tesla shares rising by 1.3%, Apple shares (NASDAQ:AAPL) increasing by 2.1%, Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) shares gaining 1.4%, and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) shares climbing by 0.9%.
European markets also saw varied results. The Euro Stoxx 50 index rose by 0.8%, Germany's DAX index increased by 0.7%, and France's CAC 40 index mirrored the DAX's 0.7% gain. However, the UK's FTSE 100 index bucked the trend, falling by 0.3%.
In commodity markets, spot gold experienced a slight decrease of 0.6%, settling at $US2018.19 per ounce at 1.54pm New York time. Brent crude oil also saw a decline, falling by 1% to $US77.27 per barrel. Iron ore prices dipped marginally by 0.1%, trading at $US128.80 per tonne.
Ahead in today's trade, investors will be closely monitoring the release of third-quarter GDP at 11.30 am AEDT, as well as German October factory orders, Eurozone October retail sales, US November ADP (NASDAQ:ADP) report, October trade balance, and Markit November services PMI later in the session.
Moody's Downgrades China
In a significant development, Moody's Investors Service revised its outlook for Chinese sovereign bonds from stable to negative, reflecting growing global concerns about the level of debt in the world's second-largest economy.
Moody's maintained a long-term rating of A1 on China's sovereign bonds but expressed concerns about the country's increased use of fiscal stimulus to support local governments and the ongoing property downturn, which could pose risks to the Chinese economy.
The Chinese government promptly responded to the downgrade, expressing disappointment with Moody's decision and asserting that the country's economy remains highly resilient with significant potential. The finance ministry further reassured that the impact of the property downturn is well managed and under control.