Key Points
- U.S. equities firmer overnight; NASDAQ hits a fresh historical high
- Oil and gold prices firmer, currencies still trading tight ranges
- Quiet day expected in Asia today
Bias: Risk on
Commentary
The bi-polar nature of the U.S. equity market struck again last night, with players ignoring concerns about Corona Virus and the global and U.S. economies to push the NASDAQ to an all time high. Participants focused on stocks that would outperform amid the continued lock down and bought them all hard. All the major indexes finished in positive territory on the day.
Currency markets largely ignored equity volatility and continued to hold tight recent ranges. The Euro continued to grind higher amid the rise in U.S. Corona Virus cases, while Sterling shrugged off Brexit after Chancellor Sunak presented yet another fiscal stimulus.
Oil and gold prices were also firmer overnight, with gold hitting a near nine year high.
Bias
Expect equities to catch a pop this morning in Asia amid the better U.S. market. Data today sees Japanese Machinery Orders, Chinese CPI and PPI and U.S. Initial Claims.