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Chinese stocks lower as White House considers fresh export

curbs

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Oil surges as U.S., EU impose fresh sanctions on Russian

energy

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Bank of Korea holds interest rates as expected

(Updates throughout)

By Amanda Cooper

LONDON, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Global stocks got a boost on

Thursday from a slew of upbeat earnings that helped counter some

of the gloom on Wall Street over a lacklustre showing from tech

megacaps, while oil prices surged following U.S. sanctions

against Russia.

Oil surged 3% after the U.S. imposed sanctions on major

Russian companies Rosneft and Lukoil over the Ukraine war.

European equities shook off overnight weakness in Asia and

the U.S. as a clutch of positive earnings boosted domestic

indexes, leaving the STOXX 600 up 0.3% on the day.

However, MSCI's All-World index drifted into

negative territory, heading for its third consecutive daily

decline.

Chinese stocks fell as much as 1.1% after sources

said the White House is considering a plan to curb an array of

software-powered exports to China to retaliate against Beijing's

latest round of rare earth export restrictions.

"With no fresh macro data to anchor sentiment, investors are

leaning defensive while Trump's Asia visit (next week) stirs

geopolitical nerves," said Charu Chanana, chief investment

strategist at Saxo Bank in Singapore.

"The chatter around U.S. software export curbs to China has

hit tech sentiment right where it hurts, and renewed sanctions

on Russia are a reminder that geopolitical risks aren't going

away either."

POSITIVE EARNINGS SURPRISES

Global equity markets are easing off record highs as

corporate earnings season kicks off. While there has been some

disappointment over results or outlooks from megacaps, most

companies so far have beaten analysts' estimates.

Futures on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were up

0.1-0.2%.

Tesla, the first of the so-called Magnificent 7 to

report earnings, saw shares fall around 4% early on Thursday,

after missing profit estimates, despite record third-quarter

revenue.

But there was still plenty for tech bulls to get their teeth

into. A report from the Wall Street Journal that the U.S.

government is in talks with several quantum-computing companies

to take stakes in exchange for federal funding saw shares in

IonQ ( IONQ ), Rigetti Computing ( RGTI ) and D-Wave Quantum ( QBTS )

jump more than 20%.

Oil rose 3% to $64.68 a barrel, after U.S. President Donald

Trump on Wednesday imposed Ukraine-related sanctions for the

first time in his second term. The same day, EU countries

approved a 19th package of sanctions on Moscow that included a

ban on Russian liquefied natural gas imports.

"When it comes to the sanctions, it's a negative for the

region," said Kyle Rodda, senior market analyst at Capital.com

in Melbourne. "Most Asian economies are net energy importers,

and this just inhibits growth and is a marginal driver of

inflation."

Sources said privately-owned Reliance Industries - India's

largest buyer of Russian oil - plans to sharply cut those

imports due to EU and U.S. sanctions, with other Indian refiners

likely to make massive reductions as well.

DON'T UNDERESTIMATE LURE OF RATE CUTS

Helping to offset some of the angst over geopolitical

flashpoints and trade tensions is the firm belief among

investors that the Federal Reserve is on the verge of a

rate-cutting spree. Markets show traders are banking on U.S.

rates falling to 3% by June from 4% now.

"Never underestimate the lure of a Fed that's cutting rates

and also the magic words: ending QT," IG chief market analyst

Chris Beauchamp said, referring to the central bank's

quantitative tightening programme, under which it runs down its

holdings of government bonds to help tighten credit conditions.

The dollar index, which tracks the U.S. currency

against six others, was last up 0.1%. Since hitting a 3-1/2-year

low in August, it has steadily edged higher, as investors have

become more confident the Fed will act to protect the economy.

Gold, which is heading for its biggest weekly slide

since May, was up 0.4% on the day at $4,110 an ounce. The price

briefly veered towards the $4,000 mark overnight, as investors

booked profits ahead of U.S. inflation data due this week.

(Additional reporting by Gregor Stuart Hunter in Singapore;

Editing by Kim Coghill and Jacqueline Wong)