Global stocks mixed after Wall St pulls back from record

A woman walks past a bank's electronic board showing the Hong Kong share index at Hong Kong Stock Exchange Wednesday, July 28, 2021. Asian stock markets declined Wednesday after Wall Street pulled back from a record as investors awaited a Federal Reserve report for signs of when U.S. stimulus might be withdrawn. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

A woman walks past a bank's electronic board showing the Hong Kong share index at Hong Kong Stock Exchange Wednesday, July 28, 2021. Asian stock markets declined Wednesday after Wall Street pulled back from a record as investors awaited a Federal Reserve report for signs of when U.S. stimulus might be withdrawn. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

People walk past a bank's electronic board showing the Hong Kong share index at Hong Kong Stock Exchange Wednesday, July 28, 2021. Asian stock markets declined Wednesday after Wall Street pulled back from a record as investors awaited a Federal Reserve report for signs of when U.S. stimulus might be withdrawn. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

BEIJING (AP) — Global stock markets were mixed Wednesday after Wall Street pulled back from a record as investors awaited a Federal Reserve report for signs of when U.S. stimulus might be withdrawn.

Investors also were uncertain how much farther China will go with a regulatory crackdown that set off a slide in its internet share prices.

London and Frankfurt opened higher while Shanghai and Tokyo declined. U.S. futures were mixed.

Investors were looking for an update from a Fed board meeting that began Tuesday on when the U.S. central bank might start to reduce bond purchases that inject money into financial markets and keep interest rates low.

“A few winds are blowing against a tapering statement,” said Jeffrey Halley of Oanda in a report, “not least the delta variant sweeping the Asia Pacific with an inevitable knock-on to its recovery.”

In early trading, the FTSE 100 in London gained 0.1% to 7,003.94 while the DAX in Frankfurt added 0.2% to 15,558.43. The CAC 40 in Paris rose 0.7% to 6,575.65.

On Wall Street, the future for the benchmark S&P 500 index was up 0.2% while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average was off less than 0.1%.

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 fell 0.5% while the Dow dropped 0.2%. The Nasdaq lost 1.2%.

Investors were digesting U.S. earnings reports while growth worries increased after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended even vaccinated people return to wearing masks indoors in areas where the coronavirus's more contagious delta variant is spreading.

In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.6% to 3,361.59, declining for a third day, while the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo fell 1.4% to 27,581.66. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 1.5% to 25,473.88.

The Kospi in Seoul lost 0.1% to 3,236.86. Sydney's S&P-ASX 200 gave up 0.7% to 7,379.30.

India's Sensex lost 0.4% to 52,383.14. New Zealand gained while Southeast Asian markets declined.

Shares in Chinese internet giants slid for a third day as investors waited for possible new action after Beijing stepped up anti-monopoly and data security enforcement against the industry. They were reported to be considering restrictions on for-profit education ventures.

Games and social media giant Tencent Holding Ltd. was up 0.3% in Hong Kong, though it still is down 25% for the month. E-commerce giant Alibaba Group shares in Hong Kong were up 1.8% but off 15% for the month.

In energy markets, benchmark U.S. crude rose 43 cents to $72.08 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude oil, the basis for international oil prices, advanced 38 cents to $73.90.

The dollar advanced to 109.92 yen from Tuesday's 109.72 yen. The euro rose to $1.1824 from $1.1786.