(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks and U.S. futures rose Tuesday with investors weighing the pace of growth as economies reopen against a pick-up in virus cases in the region. The dollar dipped.
Taiwan outperformed, jumping as much as 5.2%, as the financial stabilization fund said it was monitoring stocks after the worst rout in more than a year and data showed foreign investors had continued buying during the selloff. Japan and Hong Kong paced gains in a gauge of the region’s stocks. Earlier, technology and communication services stocks led U.S. stocks lower as volatility ticked up. European futures climbed. Treasuries were stable after retreating. A Bloomberg gauge of the dollar fell to near a four-month low touched last week.
Oil was up marginally and near a two-year high amid optimism around a demand recovery in regions such as the U.S., even as coronavirus flares up in parts of Asia.
Investors this week will parse the minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee’s latest meeting for any discussion about accelerating price pressures, and hints of a timeline for reducing asset purchases. Federal Reserve Vice Chair Richard Clarida said during a webinar that the weaker-than-expected April payroll report shows “we have not made substantial further progress” on the central bank’s goals for employment and inflation laid out as thresholds to begin scaling back the central bank’s massive monthly bond purchases.
“Hotter inflation has materialized and market volatility is rising as the economic restart gathers pace,” according to BlackRock Investment Institute strategists lead by Jean Boivin. “This is playing out in line with our view that the economy is in a ‘restart.’ We prefer to look through any volatility and see a later ‘lift-off’ from zero rates than markets expect. This means higher-than-expected inflation in the medium term, and underpins our pro-risk stance.”
Elsewhere, Bitcoin fluctuated following a volatile weekend that saw comments from Tesla Inc.’s Elon Musk whipsaw prices. Coinbase Global Inc. fell to a record low and below the reference price used in its April direct listing.
Gold traded near its highest in almost four months. Asian copper miners advanced as they may benefit from tighter regulations and higher taxes that could hit top producer Chile.
Here are some key events this week:
The Fed publishes minutes from its April meeting Wednesday, which may provide clues to officials’ views on the recovery and how they define “transitory” when it comes to inflationEIA crude oil inventory report WednesdaySt. Louis Fed President James Bullard; Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic to speak at separate events WednesdayIMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and ECB President Christine Lagarde speak at the Vienna Economic Dialogue ThursdayAustralia unemployment rate ThursdayEuro-area finance ministers and central bank chiefs hold an informal meeting. A larger group of EU finance ministers and central bank chiefs will meet May 22
These are some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
S&P 500 futures rose 0.3% as of 7 a.m. in London. The S&P 500 fell 0.3%Nasdaq 100 futures gained 0.6%. The Nasdaq 100 fell 0.6%Topix index rose 1.5%Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.6%Kospi index climbed 1.2%Hang Seng Index rose 1.2%Shanghai Composite Index was little changedEuro Stoxx 50 futures gained 0.7%
Currencies
The yen traded at 109.13 per dollarThe offshore yuan was at 6.4287 per dollar, up 0.2%The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index dipped 0.1%The euro was at $1.2167, up 0.1%The pound gained 0.2% to $1.4168
Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries was at 1.64%Australia’s 10-year bond yield rose three basis points to 1.78%
Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.3% to $66.52 a barrelGold rose 0.2% to $1,870.90
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