Global stocks mixed after Wall Street sinks for third day

By JOE McDONALD
AP Business Writer

BEIJING (AP) — Major global stock markets are mixed ahead of data on U.S. employment costs that might influence Federal Reserve decisions on interest rate hikes to cool inflation. London and Frankfurt opened lower. Tokyo advanced while Shanghai and Hong Kong declined. Wall Street futures were mixed after U.S. stocks declined for a third day as investors tried to figure out how fast the Fed might raise interest rates. The Employment Cost Index is expected to show the price of American labor rose by about 1.2% over the previous quarter in the final three months of 2021.