Global stocks lower after FOMC's July minutes suggest US inflation too high

Global stock markets and Wall Street futures mostly declined on Thursday after the Federal Reserve said US inflation is too high despite aggressive rate hikes, suggesting support for more increases.

London, Shanghai, Tokyo, and Hong Kong declined. Frankfurt opened higher. Oil prices edged up.

Notes released on Wednesday from the Fed's July 26-27 board meeting said inflation is unacceptably high", despite signs US economic growth is weakening. Board members saw little evidence to inflation pressures as subsiding.

Investors worry aggressive rate hikes imposed by the Fed and central banks in Europe and Asia this year to tame inflation that is running at multi-decade highs might derail global economic growth.

The Fed notes raised the prospects of further tightening," while some investors see possible excessive tightening dragging growth, Venkateswaran Lavanya of Mizuho Bank said in a report.

In early trading, the FTSE 100 in London slipped 0.2 per cent to 7,498.98 while Frankfurt's DAX added 0.3 per cent to 13,672.70. The CAC 40 in Paris gained 0.2 per cent to 6,539.60.

On Wall Street, futures for the benchmark S and P 500 index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were off 0.3 per cent.

In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.5 per cent to 3,277.54 and the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo fell 1 per cent to 28,942.14. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong sank 0.8 per cent to 19,763.91.

The Kospi in Seoul retreated 0.3 per cent to 2,508.05 and Sydney's S and P-ASX 200 was down 0.2 per cent at 7,112.80.

India's Sensex lost 0.3 per cent to 60,064.94. New Zealand and Bangkok declined while Singapore and Jakarta advanced.

On Wall Street, the S and P 500 tumbled 0.7 per cent on Wednesday, wiping out the week's gains. That left the index down 0.1 per cent since Monday.

The Dow sank 0.5 per cent and the Nasdaq slid 1.3 per cent.

The Fed notes made clear the board plans to keep raising rates but gave no indication when or by how much.

The US central bank has hiked its benchmark lending rate twice this year by 0.75 percentage points, triple its usual margin.

Forecasters say a hike of the same size is possible at its September meeting, though the likelihood has declined as data show the economy weakening.

The Commerce Department reported July retail sales were flat compared with the previous month, defying predictions of a slight increase.

Retailers have warned high inflation will discourage consumers from spending on non-essentials.

Retail chain Target fell 2.7 per cent after reporting a nearly 90 per cent plunge in second quarter profits.

Children's clothing and accessories chain Children's Place fell 11 per cent after reporting a surprise loss due to supply problems and pressure from inflation. Technology and communications stocks also fell.

In energy markets, benchmark US crude rose 18 cents to USD 88.29 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

It jumped USD 1.58 to USD 88.11 on Wednesday. Brent crude, the price basis for international trading, gained 37 cents to USD 94.02 per barrel in London. It surged USD 1.31 the previous session to USD 93.65.

The dollar rose to 135.28 yen from Wednesday's 135.05 yen. The euro edged down to USD 1.0163 from USD 1.0169.