European markets close higher after hitting five-week high; Heineken shares fall 5%

U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak moved to reinstate the ban on fracking that was laid out in the Conservative Party's manifesto in 2019.

The ruling party pledged it would "not support fracking unless the science shows categorically that it can be done safely," but former Prime Minister Liz Truss had reversed the ban.

— Hannah Ward-Glenton

Earnings were a key driver of individual share price action on Wednesday.

Shares of Dutch semiconductor firm ASMI dropped 8% by mid-afternoon after a weak earnings report and fourth-quarter outlook, while Heineken shares plunged more than 7% after the world's second-largest brewer missed third-quarter beer sales expectations.

At the top of the European blue chip index, Skanska shares climbed 5% after the Swedish construction company beat third-quarter profit estimates.

- Elliot Smith

The U.K.'s annual budget statement will be delayed to Nov. 17 after it was initially brought forward to Oct. 31. 

The budget will contain the country's medium-term economic plan to "cut public spending on a sustainable footing, get debt falling & restore stability," according to a statement by HM Treasury. 

Sterling rose to a six-week high as new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak met with his cabinet for the first time this morning and on rumors the budget statement could be delayed. The pound was last up 1.16% against the dollar around $1.16.

— Hannah Ward-Glenton

Anders Danielsson, Skanska CEO, breaks down his firm's third-quarter earnings as the Swedish builder posts a bigger-than-expected profit but faces strong headwinds amid rising input costs and interest rates.

The current market uptick is investors pausing to reposition risk assets before the end of the year, says Porta Advisors Chairman Beat Wittmann; and central banks, led by the Fed, will continue to tighten.

The British pound was up 1% against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday morning as the greenback weakened against most major currencies.

The pound is also enjoying a fragile relief rally following the appointment of former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak as prime minister.

Sterling was trading at around $1.158 by late morning, while the euro also climbed back above parity with the greenback, last trading at around $1.02.

- Elliot Smith

Earnings were a key driver of individual share price action on Wednesday.

Shares of Dutch semiconductor firm ASMI dropped 8% by mid-afternoon after a weak earnings report and fourth-quarter outlook, while Heineken shares plunged more than 7% after the world's second-largest brewer missed third-quarter beer sales expectations.

At the top of the European blue chip index, Skanska shares climbed 5% after the Swedish construction company beat third-quarter profit estimates.

- Elliot Smith

Banks Standard Chartered, Barclays and Deutsche Bank surpassed analyst predictions as they reported third quarter earnings Wednesday morning.

It follows UBS and HSBC beating expectations Tuesday.

Barclays noted strong performance in fixed income, currencies and commodities trading, where it grew income by 93% to £1.546 billion ($1.77 billion).

The CFO of Deutsche Bank, James von Moltke, told CNBC's Joumanna Bercetche it was "seeing the benefit of interest rates come through in our corporate bank and private bank, essentially those with large deposit books."

— Jenni Reid

European indexes are expected to slightly lower this morning. Italy's MIB was set to open down 80 points, the UK's FTSE 100 down 17.5 points, France's CAC 40 down 13.5 points and Germany's DAX down 18 points.

— Jenni Reid

When the S&P 500 is in a bear market, and growth stocks are falling alongside bonds, what should investors do?

Fund manager Brian Arcese spoke to CNBC "Pro Talks", shared his rescue plan and named 3 stocks to own during a recession.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Ganesh Rao

The benchmark Hang Seng index in Hong Kong rallied in the morning session, but was still down around 4% for the week so far and nearly 10% month to date.

On Monday, the index dropped more than 6% following the conclusion of the Communist Party of China's 20th National Congress over the weekend where President Xi Jinping tightened his grip on power.

The HSI was volatile on Tuesday before closing 0.1% lower. It has risen as much as 2.56% on Wednesday.

— Abigail Ng

Markets have been volatile, with stocks swinging back to sharp gains last week after steep declines.

Still, there's uncertainty around inflation and interest rate hikes.

Amid the noise, John Petrides, portfolio manager at Tocqueville Asset Management, highlights three plays investors can get into right now.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Weizhen Tan

Shares of Google-parent Alphabet dropped 6.5% in extended trading after the online search giant reported lackluster third-quarter earnings results.

Alphabet missed expectations on the top and bottom lines, and reported a decline in YouTube ad revenue, signaling trouble ahead for tech companies reporting earnings this week that also rely on ad spending.

Other mega-cap tech stocks declined following the report. Shares of Meta Platforms fell 4.1% in after hours trading, while Amazon slipped 4.6%. Apple dropped 0.7%.

— Sarah Min

Tuesday's chilled consumer confidence data from The Conference Board is casting doubt on if or by how much the Fed will raise interest rates after November's meeting, according to Jeffrey Roach, chief economist for LPL Financial.

"The Federal Reserve will likely hike rates by 0.75% in November to cool inflationary pressures but the magnitude at the December meeting is a bit of a wild card since strong consumer demand will keep upward pressure on prices," he said following the release on the data. "The biggest risk is the unknown lagged effects from the Fed's cumulative tightening and the economy may not feel the full effects until next year when recession risks are high."

— Alex Harring