Financials Up, But Not By Much, As Data Muddies Rate View -- Financials Roundup

Banks, lenders and other financial companies rose, but not by as much as the broad market, after another weak inflation gauge diminished odds of a rate hike in December.

Consumer prices, excluding the volatile food and energy categories, grew 0.1% in July from a month earlier and just 1.4% over the past year, trailing Fed targets for optimum inflation, according to data from the Commerce Department.

One brokerage said recent jitters in financial markets could foreshadow tightening in credit markets. "Despite a looming shift in central bank policy globally, our financial conditions indices (FCI) suggest that conditions across the [four largest developed economies] remain supportive of a cyclical recovery and asset market reflation," said analysts at brokerage Morgan Stanley, in a research note. "However, a rise in financial market volatility and in bond yields could suggest that tighter conditions might lie ahead in the second half of this year."

Wells Fargo said around 3.5 million customer accounts were "potentially unauthorized" in its sales-practices scandal upon the completion of its review, more than 1 million more than initially announced.

Canadian lender Toronto-Dominion Bank echoed rivals such as Bank of Montreal, saying quarterly earnings and revenue rose. TD Bank cited improved customer credit and lower insurance claims.

-Rob Curran, rob.curran@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 31, 2017 16:36 ET (20:36 GMT)