Dollar hits 16-month high, stocks rebound as US inflation hits 31-year peak

The dollar rose on Thursday, hitting a 16-month high a day after the strongest U.S. inflation reading in more than three decades, while equities rebounded on expectations higher consumer prices will help corporate growth.

The UK's blue-chip stock index rose to 20-month highs as China-exposed miners listed in London bounced on relief that property developer China Evergrande averted a default.

European shares advanced after Goldman Sachs said regional earnings have been resilient to supply chain snags, a message that echoed on Wall Street as investors viewed the impact on rising prices as temporary but positive for corporate profits.

"Inflation in and of itself isn't always a bad thing for the equity market," Don Townswick, director of equity strategies at institutional asset manager Conning. "Typically tightening happens when the economy is doing really well, so merely the prospect of some higher interest rates isn't a problem."

Rising producer prices historically have signaled higher operating margins, which are not reflected in next year's earnings estimates, according to Andrew Slimmon, a managing director at Morgan Stanley Investment Management.

"We think earnings revisions for next year will have to go back up again - a positive for 2022," Slimmon said in a note.

The dollar index, which gauges the currency against six peers including the yen and euro, rose further after posting on Wednesday its biggest daily jump since March following a higher-than-expected rise in U.S. consumer price data. [/FRX]

The CPI index posted its biggest monthly gain in four months to lift the annual increase in inflation to 6.2%, the strongest year-on-year advance since November 1990.

The dollar pushed the euro below $1.15, leaving the next major chart support level down at $1.12. European stocks moved higher, sensing the potential for a competitive boost.

MSCI's all-country world index closed up 0.07% as Wall Street pared gains at the close. The broad STOXX Europe 600 index rose 0.32% to end at a record closing high.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.44%, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.52% and the S&P 500 added 0.06%, almost turning negative at the bell.