Tesla shares jumped $31.58, or 3.2%, to $1,008.78 after the electric-vehicle maker reported $3.3 billion in quarterly profits late Wednesday, its highest profit to date. Chief Executive Elon Musk said the company likely would produce more than 1.5 million vehicles in 2022, up 60% over last year. The results pointed to progress in Tesla's business, but also challenges posed by the stop-start emergence of the world economy from Covid-19 lockdowns and the supply-chain snarl-ups that have accompanied the unusual recovery. Tesla delivered around 310,000 vehicles globally in the first quarter, up from 184,877 a year earlier. Tesla shares have long been driven by a fervor for the company and its chief executive, who has garnered a loyal following on Twitter. The stock got another boost when it joined the S&P 500 in December 2020, prompting money managers tracking the index to buy Tesla shares. Tesla hit its highest closing price of $1,229.91 in early November 2021. Shortly afterward, the shares dropped when Twitter users voted for Mr. Musk to sell part of his stake in the firm. Tesla has drifted lower since then, but held up better than many other stocks into which investors piled during Covid-19 shutdowns. The share price was down 7.5% this year through Wednesday's close, compared with a 6.4% fall for the broader S&P 500, and was 31% higher than a year ago. Mr. Musk has again used Twitter to unusual effect in recent days, sending cryptic tweets that hinted at the prospect of a tender offer to buy the social-media company. Twitter is expected to rebuff his existing $43 billion bid, which came after Mr. Musk built a big stake in the company and criticized its moderation policies.

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On Thursday, the SMI lost 0.1 per cent to 12,301 points. Among the 20 SMI stocks, there were 12 price gainers and 8 price losers. 39.02 (previously: 35.47) million shares were traded. ABB's figures were extremely well received. The share rose by 4.9 per cent. In the first quarter, the technology group increased its profit significantly more than its turnover. In addition, the company recorded a strong increase in new orders of 28 per cent to 9.37 billion US dollars. The shares of index heavyweight Nestle gained 0.7 per cent. The consumer goods group passed on higher costs to consumers and increased sales in the first quarter. The group reaffirmed its outlook for the full year. Holcim rose 2.4 per cent. The cement manufacturer will present figures for the first quarter on Friday. Roche lost 2.1 per cent. The share of the pharmaceutical group thus continued its downward movement since a sell recommendation by UBS at the beginning of the week. The shares of competitor Novartis fell 0.1 per cent.

European equity markets closed higher on Thursday, buoyed by a rebound on Wall Street and strong corporate earnings. The Stoxx Europe index closed up 0.3% at 461.57 points. In Paris, the CAC 40 gained 1.4% to 6,715.10 points and the SBF 120 gained 1.4% to 5,208.70 points. In Frankfurt, the DAX 40 gained 1%, while in London the FTSE 100 was virtually unchanged, penalised by the decline in mining stocks. On the macroeconomic front, inflation in the eurozone accelerated in March, reaching its highest level ever, but was slightly lower than initially estimated. Consumer prices in the euro area rose by 7.4% year-on-year in March, compared to a preliminary estimate of 7.5% and following a 5.9% rise in February. Verallia (+11.4%) reported strong sales growth in the first quarter and confirmed its targets for 2022. Between January and March, sales jumped by 24%, allowing the management to confirm their forecast of sales growth of over 10% this year. Rexel (+6.4%) also recorded strong growth in the first three months of the year. Its revenues rose by 19.1% on a like-for-like basis and on a current-day basis, to €4.4 billion. Rail equipment supplier Alstom (+3.2%) announced on Thursday that it had signed a framework agreement worth around €700 million with the Department of Transport of the State of Victoria, Australia, for the supply of 100 new generation trams. Eurofins (-6.8%) raised its outlook for 2022 after reporting organic growth of 1.1% in the first quarter. Carrefour (-3%) exceeded expectations in the first quarter, with a 9% year-on-year increase to 20.24 billion euros. The group's share price is taking a break after having risen by 26% since the beginning of the year, according to Citi.

U.S. stocks slid Thursday, erasing their gains from earlier in the day after a selloff in government bonds picked up steam. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell signaled Thursday that the central bank was likely to raise interest rates by a half percentage point at its meeting next month. Anxiety over the Fed’s projected rate-increase path helped fuel selling in Treasurys. The renewed push higher in bond yields put fresh pressure on the stock market. Higher rates can put pressure on stocks because they reduce the premium that investors get from holding riskier assets instead of Treasurys. The S&P 500 fell 65.79 points, or 1.5%, to 4393.66. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 278.41 points, or 2.1%, to 13174.65, adding to losses from Wednesday after a selloff in Netflix shares led the technology sector lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 368.03 points, or 1%, to 34792.76. American Airlines Group shares rose 74 cents, or 3.8%, to $20.22 after the carrier reported that revenue more than doubled in the first quarter. Technology shares, which tend to be sensitive to changes in interest rates, were among the worst performers in the market Thursday. Advanced Micro Devices slipped $4.17, or 4.4%, to $89.85, while Salesforce lost $9, or 4.8%, to $177.23. Philip Morris International (+2%) reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings on Thursday, but the Marlboro cigarette maker cut its earnings forecast for this year. Chemicals group Dow (+2.9%) equally reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings and revenues, driven by volume and price growth and despite higher energy costs.

In Asia, major indexes broadly closed with losses. In China, shares came under pressure on concerns that Covid-19 shutdowns were slowing growth in the world’s second-largest economy. The Shanghai Composite is barely holding its ground, recovering from the day's lows. In Hong Kong, the HSI falls more sharply, but the benchmark index trades well above the day's low. China Unicom was unchanged, demonstrating relative strength. The company improved its earnings in the first quarter. The Nikkei-225 in Tokyo was very weak - weighed down by weak technology stocks, which were depressed by rising interest rate expectations. Against the trend, Toshiba rises by 4.3 per cent; the company is examining further privatisation steps. In South Korea, the Kospi loses around 1 per cent. Here, too, the technology sector is dragging down the index along with energy stocks. The index heavyweight Samsung Electronics fell by 1 per cent, the semiconductor shares of SK Hynix by as much as 1.8 per cent. Naver extended its previous day's losses by 2.8 per cent after the disappointing business figures.

Treasury yields rose Thursday as Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell affirmed that a half-point rate hike is “on the table” in May, while investors snapped up inflation-protected securities in an auction. The 10-year Treasury note jumped 7 basis points to 2.909%. The yield of the two-year note, which is particularly sensitive to rate hike expectations, rose 9 basis points to 2.67%.

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