U.S. Stocks Gain Alongside Europe; Dollar Weakens: Markets Wrap

Source

U.S. stocks edged higher while Europe’s equity benchmark headed to its biggest gain in almost three weeks. The dollar slipped.

Energy companies led the S&P 500 Index higher, though gains were muted amid worries about new coronavirus variants and hurdles to a fresh aid package as President Joe Biden said he’s open to negotiating his $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief proposal. GameStop Corp. extended its surge, climbing 20% as day traders continued to pile into the heavily shorted retailer.

European stock markets were almost uniformly green. Naturgy Energy Group SA soared as much as 18% as asset manager IFM Global Infrastructure offered to buy a stake in the Spanish utility. Sweden’s EQT AB, one of Europe’s biggest private equity firms, jumped 22% after agreeing to take over Exeter Property Group in a $1.9 billion deal.

Global stocks are trading near record highs as U.S. corporate earnings season gears up this week, with traders also keeping a eye on developments related to the pandemic and its spread. Vaccine coverage won’t reach a point that would stop transmission of the virus in the foreseeable future, the World Health Organization said.

“There are some negative news on lockdowns, new virus variants, and questions about vaccine efficacy,” said Mark Nash, head of fixed-income alternatives at Jupiter Asset Management. “That’s not a good combination for markets expecting a perfect world.”

Elsewhere, Treasury yields edged higher. Bitcoin retreated below $32,000. In Asia, stocks markets took a dive after China’s central bank withdrew cash from the banking system and an official cautioned about asset bubbles. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index sank the most in two months and internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd. lost 6.3%.

These are some key events coming up in the week ahead:

  • Microsoft Corp., Apple Inc., Tesla Inc., Facebook Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. are among companies reporting results.
  • The Federal Open Market Committee monetary policy decision and briefing by Chair Jerome Powell are scheduled for Wednesday.
  • Fourth-quarter GDP, initial jobless claims and new home sales are among U.S. data releases Thursday.
  • U.S. personal income, spending and pending home sales come Friday.

These are the main moves in markets:

Stocks

  • The S&P 500 Index increased 0.4% as of 9:31 a.m. New York time.
  • The Stoxx Europe 600 Index gained 0.9%.
  • The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 1.3%.
  • The MSCI Emerging Market Index dipped 1.4%.

Currencies

  • The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2%.
  • The euro rose 0.2% to $1.2159.
  • The British pound climbed 0.3% to $1.3717.
  • The Japanese yen rose 0.1% to 103.66 per dollar.

Bonds

  • The yield on 10-year Treasuries climbed two basis points to 1.05%.
  • Germany’s 10-year yield added one basis point to -0.54%.
  • Britain’s 10-year yield rose one basis point to 0.27%.

Commodities

  • West Texas Intermediate crude advanced 0.3% to $52.91 per barrel.
  • Gold was little changed at $1,856.64 an ounce.
    Published on
    Updated on