DAILY MARKET NEWS

Stock-Rise

EQUITIES

Asian shares higher in the morning trade. Stocks in Japan led gains among the region’s major markets in morning trade, with the Nikkei 225 jumping 1.71% while the Topix index advanced 1.51%. South Korea’s KOSPI up 1.41%, Singapore’s gained 1.02%, and Australia S&P/ASX 200 recorded 0.48%. Mainland Chinese stocks, China's Shanghai Composite advanced 0.11%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index retreated -0.32% in early trade.

Overnight on Wall Street, S&P 500 rose 1% to 3,431.28 and hit an all-time high, with Monday also marking the index’s first-ever close above 3,400. The Dow Jones gained 1.4%, and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.6% to close at 11,379.72 to also reached a record.

OIL

Oil clung to overnight gains after storms disrupted U.S. production. Brent crude futures traded to $45.22 a barrel, while U.S. crude at $42.55.

On Monday, Brent closed at $45.13 per barrel, while WTI futures ended at $42.62 per barrel.

CURRENCIES

In currency markets, the dollar, which has been sensitive to sentiment in equity markets edged higher, defying pressure from a gain in stocks that often leads investors to sell dollars for riskier currencies. A small overnight rise in yields also supported the dollar and against a basket of currencies it held the line at 93.19, about 1.3% higher than a two-year trough it hit a week ago.

The oil-sensitive Canadian dollar fell about 0.9% overnight to 1.3228 per U.S. dollar, even though oil prices rose. The New Zealand dollar has been unable to trade above 66 cents for a week and last sat at $0.6524.

GOLD

Gold currently trading at $1,929.50 per ounce, while stands around $1,937.00 per ounce for gold futures. Previously closed at $1,928.60 and $1,939.20, respectively.

Silver trading at $26.57, platinum trading at $914.00 and palladium trading at $2,071.00.

ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

Asian stocks looked poised for modest gains after U.S. equities rose to a record high, driven by vaccine hopes, while the dollar found some support ahead of a key central bank speech.

Also supporting the mood were statements from both China and the United States agreeing to continue pushing forward the implementation of the bilateral Phase 1 trade deal reached earlier this year during a call between the two countries’ top trade negotiators.

Oil prices rose as storms headed for the Gulf of Mexico shut more than half of the region's offshore production, with the more dangerous of the two storms expected to strike later in the week. Energy companies shut more than 1 million bpd of offshore crude oil supply in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and evacuated more than 100 production platforms because of the twin threat from Tropical Storms Marco and Laura.

To date, number of confirmed worldwide cases for COVID-19 pandemic has surpassed 23.809 million affecting 213 countries and territories around the world and 2 international conveyances, recording more than 817 thousand fatality globally.