World shares mostly higher after S&P hits new record close

Shares are mostly higher in Europe and Asia after gains in several big-name tech companies including Apple helped nudge the S&P 500 to another record high

BANGKOK -- Shares were mostly higher in Europe and Asia after gains in several big-name tech companies including Apple helped nudge the S&P 500 to another record high. Investors are watching for the outcome of the Federal Reserve’s policy setting meeting this week. Benchmarks rose in Paris, Frankfurt and Tokyo but fell in Hong Kong and Shanghai, where jitters over tensions between China and the U.S. are weighing on sentiment. Investors are watching for the outcome of the Federal Reserve’s policy setting meeting this week, where decisionmakers will gauge the strength of the economic recovery and whether emerging signs of inflation will be transitory. The concern is that the Fed could ease up on bond purchases and other stimulus measures as the economy recovers. The Fed delivers its interest rate policy update Wednesday afternoon and no policy changes are expected immediately, but comments on a shift in policy could jostle already skittish markets.