Markets on Wall Street will be closed today for the Independence Day holiday. European markets were slightly higher Tuesday, with investors in a cautious mood ahead of data releases and the start of second-quarter earnings season. The pan-European Stoxx 600 was 0.3% higher in early afternoon trade amid muted trade. Health-care stocks led gains, up 0.9%, as auto stocks dropped 0.6%. Asia-Pacific markets were mixed as investors further assessed the Reserve Bank of Australia’s decision to hold its rates steady at 4.10%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 pared earlier losses and rose 0.45% to end its session at 7,279. The Australian dollar weakened 0.3% to 0.665 against the U.S. dollar. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 retreated from a new 33-year high recorded on Monday, falling 0.98% to 33,422.53, with the Topix also recording a smaller loss of 0.62% to close at 2,306.37. South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.35% to close at 2,593.31 as the country’s consumer price index grew at a slower rate of 2.7% in June. The latest reading marked a fifth straight month of decline, inching closer to the central bank’s target range. In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite rose fractionally to close at 3,245.35 while the Shenzhen Component gained 0.35% to end at 11,130.30. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index also rose 0.61% in its final hour of trade led by energy and industrial stocks. The Hang Seng Tech index rose 0.7%. Oil prices held steady on Tuesday as markets weighed supply woes from cuts for August by top exporters Saudi Arabia and Russia against economic data that hinted at weak crude demand. Brent crude futures were up 22 cents, or 0.3%, at $74.87 a barrel by 0033 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude were at $70.06, up 27 cents, or 0.3%. Gold prices were flat on Tuesday in thin trading due to a U.S. holiday, while traders awaited the U.S. Federal Reserve’s minutes of the June meeting on Wednesday for more clues on its interest rate hike path ahead. Spot gold was little changed at $1,921.39 per ounce by 0241 GMT, while U.S. gold futures were flat at $1,929.10. Trading volume could be light due to a U.S. holiday.
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