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Stock Rally Extends; Dollar Lowest Since March: Markets Wrap

(Bloomberg) — The global rally in stocks showed no signs of abating Wednesday as investors continued to bet on a quick economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. The dollar hit the lowest level since late March.

South Korean shares led gains in Asia after the country detailed a third round of fiscal stimulus. Indonesia’s rupiah was the outperformer in currencies, after record orders at a local bond auction. Treasuries dipped. U.S. equity futures pushed up after the S&P 500 closed at its highest since early March. Brent crude extended its rebound above $40 as investors eyed a potential extension of record production curbs by OPEC+.

Global stocks are trading at a three-month high as businesses continue to reopen around the world and manufacturing gauges show economies stabilizing following coronavirus shutdowns. That’s despite a slew of risks still on the horizon, including tense U.S.-China relations that may jeopardize a hard-won trade deal.

Traders are also looking past civil and political unrest in the U.S. Chicago will enter the next phase of its reopening plan as scheduled on Wednesday, protests notwithstanding.

“If I look at the markets, I see a V-shaped recovery,” Mark Mobius, co-founder at Mobius Capital Partners, said on Bloomberg TV. “That’s what the markets are telling us.”

Elsewhere, the Australian dollar pared gains after data showed the economy retreated on a quarterly basis in the first three months of the year. On Tuesday, European shares climbed to a 12-week high as Chancellor Angela Merkel sought to thrash out a second aid package for Germany.

Here are some key events coming up:

  • In Europe, the ECB is expected to top up its rescue program with an additional 500 billion euros of asset purchases at a meeting on Thursday. Anything less than an expansion would be a big shock, Bloomberg Economics said.
  • The U.S. labor market report on Friday will probably show American unemployment soared to 19.6% in May, the highest since the 1930s.

These are the main moves in markets:

Stocks

  • Futures on the S&P 500 Index rose 0.2% as of 12:10 p.m. in Tokyo. The gauge rose 0.8% on Tuesday.
  • Japan’s Topix index advanced 0.6%.
  • Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 1.2%.
  • Shanghai Composite index added 0.3%.
  • South Korea’s Kospi index climbed 2.5%.
  • Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index added 1%.
  • Euro Stoxx 50 futures rose 1.1%.

Currencies

  • The yen was at 108.57 per dollar, up 0.1%.
  • The offshore yuan dipped 0.2% to 7.1176 per dollar.
  • The euro bought $1.1196, up 0.2%.

Bonds

  • The yield on 10-year Treasuries climbed about two basis points to 0.70%.
  • Australia’s 10-year yield climbed about six basis points to 0.97%.

Commodities

  • West Texas Intermediate crude increased 2.2% to $37.61 a barrel. Brent was at $40.17 a barrel, up 1.5%.
  • Gold held at $1,729 an ounce.

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