European stocks close lower as central banks continue aggressive rate hikes; Stoxx 600 down 1%

Dutch banking and financial services company ING Group rose 8% in afternoon deals, following the launch of a share buyback plan worth 1.5 billion euros.

Meanwhile, German appliance manufacturer Rational slumped 12% after reporting its third-quarter financial results Thursday.

— Karen Gilchrist

U.S. stocks opened lower Thursday after the Federal Reserve delivered another interest rate hike and dashed hopes for a pivot to a softer tightening stance.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.9% lower in early deals while the S&P 500 was down 1.2%. The Nasdaq Composite also traded down 1.4%.

— Karen Gilchrist

The Bank of England on Thursday raised interest rates by 75 basis points, its largest single hike since 1989, but struck a dovish tone as policymakers looked to temper market expectations for further aggressive monetary policy tightening.

The 75 basis point increase takes the Bank Rate to 3%, its eighth consecutive hike to the main lending rate, after the Monetary Policy Committee voted 7-2 in favor. One member voted for a 0.5 percentage point rise while one preferred a 0.25 increase.

"The majority of the Committee judges that, should the economy evolve broadly in line with the latest Monetary Policy Report projections, further increases in Bank Rate may be required for a sustainable return of inflation to target, albeit to a peak lower than priced into financial markets," the MPC said, offering uncharacteristically specific guidance to the market.

Read the full story here.

- Elliot Smith

European Central Bank policymaker Mario Centeno told Portuguese newspaper Publico on Thursday that a large portion of the euro zone's interest rate hikes have already been done.

The ECB has hiked rates by 200 basis points in total over its past three monetary policy meetings as it looks to rein in record-high inflation, which is expected to peak in the fourth quarter.

- Elliot Smith

Netcompany shares soared more than 16% in early trade to lead the Stoxx 600 after the Danish IT consultancy reported strong third-quarter earnings.

At the bottom of the European blue chip index, shares of British industrial distributor RS Group fell 10% after the company's half-year report and announcement that its CEO will take a leave of absence.

- Elliot Smith

The British pound is on firmer footing since the appointment of new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, but Wall Street still sees further vulnerability over the next 12 months.

In a note Monday, Deutsche Bank vice president and FX strategist Shreyas Gopal said the "crisis" chapter on the U.K. can now close, with the pound now likely to trade as a "normal" currency, but noted that downward pressure from large external financing needs and low real rates remains.

Read the full story here.

- Elliot Smith

Refinitiv data showed that the U.S. 2-year Treasury yield briefly surpassed 5.1% during Asia's afternoon session. It last stood at 4.6804%.

The reason for the spike was not immediately clear.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose during U.S. hours after Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the terminal rate will still be higher than anticipated – and last stood at 4.1448%.

The yield on the 30-year Treasury bond was also higher at 4.1908%.

Yields move inversely to prices, and 1 basis point is equal to 0.01%.

–Jihye Lee

Investors need to "remain cautious" about unverified notes circulating on social media hinting at a potential China reopening early next year, a strategist at Credit Suisse said.

"I think, judging from different angles with a lot of news flows — especially the unverified ones, we need to remain cautious," said Edmond Huang, Credit Suisse's head of China securities research.

Speaking at the firm's China Investment Conference, Huang said it's more likely to be a measured process of reopening than an abrupt one.

"It'll take some time especially after party congress and the formation of the new government — which means it'll be a more gradual process than overnight, with China reopening completely to the rest of the world," he said.

— Jihye Lee

JPMorgan Asset Management expects the Federal Reserve to hike rates by a smaller 50 basis points in December, according to a note.

APAC Chief Market Strategist Tai Hui said the Fed could take a more moderate path in the near future.

"If core inflation does ease between now and the end of the year, the Fed could opt for a more moderate rate path and avoid putting the economy into a recession," he said in the note.

"We do think that there are some easing in inflation on the horizon," he said, adding that the Fed's tightening cycle is expected to extend into the second quarter of 2023.

–Jihye Lee

Only a handful of companies have avoided a cut on their share price target by Wall Street banks this earnings season, a CNBC Pro analysis has revealed.

Of the nearly 300 companies in the S&P 500 that reported results in the past month, more than two-thirds – 72% – have seen their median price targets slashed or left unchanged by analysts compared to a month ago.

Only 13 stocks have emerged with a meaningfully higher price target of 5% or more and still offered a potential upside of at least 5%.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Ganesh Rao

In a briefing with reporters on Wednesday following a fourth consecutive 0.75 percentage point rate hike, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank's ultimate target for increases in interest rates has gone up.

"We still have some ways to go and incoming data since our last meeting suggests that the ultimate level of interest rates will be higher than previously expected," he said.

Stocks slipped following the comment, which signals that interest rates will continue to march higher and likely stay at a higher level than expected for longer as the Fed tames inflation. That reversed gains from earlier in the afternoon when traders digested the Fed statement as more dovish and hoped that rate hikes would be smaller in the future.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up about 60 points but pared gains. The S&P 500 also slumped from a post-rate hike spike and was up only 0.09%. The Nasdaq was slightly in the red.

—Carmen Reinicke

European markets are heading for a negative open Thursday as investors digest the latest rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve and comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell.

The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index is expected to open 20 points lower at 7,538, Germany's DAX 54 points lower at 15,160, France's CAC 37 points lower at 7,092 and Italy's FTSE MIB down 102 points at 25,928, according to data from IG.

In Europe Thursday, the Bank of England will also be announcing its latest interest rate decision. The monetary policy committee's meeting comes a day after data was released showing U.K. inflation rose unexpectedly in February. Many analysts expect a 25 basis point hike.

— Holly Ellyatt