UKX FTSE 100 Index

By Avantika Chilkoti 

Global stocks edged up Thursday as a slew of central-bank decisions and major corporate earnings provided mixed clues on the state of the global economy.

The Stoxx Europe 600 index rose 0.6%, even as Finland's Nokia dropped 20% after disappointing investors by slashing its full-year forecast. The world's second-biggest telecom-equipment maker was the worst performer in Europe as the growing costs of rolling out gear for 5G mobile networks also forced it to halt its dividend.

In the U.S., earnings reports triggered large swings in some stocks ahead of the opening bell. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.2%.

Twitter dropped over 18% in premarket trading after the social-media company's third-quarter earnings fell short of expectations. Its fourth-quarter revenue forecast also disappointed the market.

Tesla shares rose 18% in off-hours trading after the electric-car maker surprised investors by reporting a profit for the third quarter, allaying fears that it was prioritizing growth and production over profit. PayPal Holdings rose 8.6% after the payments company posted better-than-expected results in its latest quarter with a 19% rise in revenue.

Ebay dropped 7.8% in premarket trading after the online marketplace forecast its first quarterly revenue decline in four years. Ford shares fell 4% after the car maker lowered its full-year target, sparking worries that a broad restructuring at the company isn't succeeding in driving earnings growth.

Baxter International declined 5.9% after the health-products company said it may need to restate results for at least five years.

The European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged and stuck with a plan to start buying bonds next month. The yield on German 10-year bonds were up to minus 0.387% from minus 0.391% on Wednesday. The euro was broadly flat on the dollar.

Other central banks also took action on Thursday. Bank Indonesia cut interest rates by a further 25 basis points, sending the rupiah down 0.5% on the dollar. Meanwhile, Turkey's central bank surprised markets with a bigger-than-expected cut to its key repo rate, sending the lira down 0.4%. The Norwegian and Swedish central banks held their benchmark rates unchanged.

Meanwhile, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 index outpaced other major gauges in the region, rising 0.9%. European Council President Donald Tusk is asking leaders to give the U.K. until Jan. 31 to leave the European Union. The pound ticked down about 0.1% against the U.S. dollar.

A number of blue-chip companies in the U.S. including Intel, Amazon.com and Visa are set to report third-quarter earnings through the day.

Write to Avantika Chilkoti at Avantika.Chilkoti@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 24, 2019 09:12 ET (13:12 GMT)

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