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| - Wall Street rebounded Friday from earlier losses on reports that the Biden administration will seek a huge tax hike, but Europe remained on the back foot despite bright economic data. Wall Street's main indices had ended Thursday down nearly one percent after the first reports broke of the possible hike that would cut into earnings made on selling stocks. But after a mixed start on Friday, they pushed higher in morning trading, with the Dow up 0.5 percent. "US markets appear to be recovering some of their equilibrium after yesterday's losses, helped by strong economic data, from March new home sales and solid" PMI surveys of business activity, said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK. "However, it's unlikely to be enough to prevent the first weekly loss since mid-March," he added. Wall Street pulled back at the beginning of the week despite mostly strong earnings as investors pondered whether stocks have much more upside after a series of records in early 2021. In, Europe, stocks mostly fell, despite bright survey data for the region. London stocks ended the day flat, while Paris dipped 0.2 percent and Frankfurt shed 0.3 percent. "It's been a lacklustre end to what has been a negative week for European stocks, with concerns about surging Covid-19 infection rates in Asia weighing on sentiment over the past few days," said Hewson. Asian share prices struggled to find clear direction. Eurozone economic recovery accelerated somewhat in April despite Covid restrictions, a key survey showed Friday, as business activity grew at its fastest pace since the summer thanks to a manufacturing boom. IHS Markit's eurozone composite Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), a key gauge of business activity, rose to 53.7 points in April from 53.2 in March, remaining above the 50-point level that indicates growth. It marked a second straight month of expansion in business activity after four consecutive months of decline. Britain's composite PMI surged in April to 60 points on the back of the nation's easing Covid restrictions. That marked the highest level since late 2013, and compared with 56.4 in March. However, European shares failed to win much traction from the news. Wall Street had tumbled Thursday following reports that US President Joe Biden's administration is considering a tax hike on high-end stock investors. Washington is said to be developing a plan to slap new levies on wealthy investors, including a near doubling of the tax on stock transaction profits to 39.6 percent for people earning more than $1 million. Any tax plan faces a long process in Congress before becoming a reality, but analysts said the reports indicate hikes are very much in the mix in Washington. Biden also called for an increase in corporate taxes to finance his $2-trillion infrastructure package. "Yesterday's news was a nettlesome reminder that the spectre of higher tax rates of some kind coming to pass, whether they be corporate, capital gains, property, or personal, will be an ongoing headwind for the stock market," said Patrick O'Hare at Briefing.com. The news on Thursday also sent jitters through digital currency markets, with Bitcoin dropping below $50,000 in Friday morning trade just days after clocking a record high above $63,000. New York - Dow: UP 0.5 percent at 33,995.96 points EURO STOXX 50: DOWN less than 0.1 percent at 4,012.96 London - FTSE 100: FLAT at 6,938.56 (close) Frankfurt - DAX 30: DOWN 0.3 percent at 15,279.62 (close) Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.2 percent at 6,257.94 (close) Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.6 percent at 29,020.63 (close) Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 1.1 percent at 29,078.75 (close) Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.3 percent at 3,474.17 (close) Euro/dollar: UP at $1.2062 from $1.2015 Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3843 from $1.3839 Euro/pound: UP at 87.12 pence from 86.82 pence Dollar/yen: UP at 108.84 yen from 107.97 yen Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.7 percent at $65.83 per barrel West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.7 percent at $61.88 per barrel burs-rl/spm
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