Asian stocks were close to 1-1 / 2-week highs on Monday, helped by expectations that monetary policy will continue to be accommodative around the world, while the deployment of COVID-19 vaccines will help allay fears of another dangerous wave of coronavirus infections.
MSCI’s largest Asia-Pacific equities index outside of Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) was last at 695.59, a surprising distance from Friday’s high of 696.48, a level not was seen from April 7th.
The index jumped 1.2% last week and rose 5% so far this year, following its third consecutive annual gain.
“The establishment of extremely supportive monetary and fiscal policies continues to provide a fertile environment for risky assets,” said Rodrigo Catril, senior forex strategist at National Australia Bank.
Australian equities (.AXJO) were 0.25% higher, while the New Zealand benchmark (.NZ50) and South Korean KOSPI (.KS11) added 0.4% each. The Japanese Nikkei (.N225) relaxed 0.4%.
On Friday, the S&P 500 (.SPX) gained 0.4% to close on a new record as it recorded its sixth consecutive weekly gain. The Dow (.DJI) finished 0.5%, also on a record, while the Nasdaq (.IXIC) rose 0.1%.
Futures E-mini for the S&P 500 fell 0.3% in early Asian operations.
This week starts off quietly and there are no major data releases on Monday.
Investors will keep their eyes open on IBM (IBM.N) and Coca-Cola (COKE.O) gains later. Netflix (NFLX.O) reports this Tuesday, while later in the week American Airlines (AAL.O) and Southwest (LUV.N) will be the first major post-COVID cycles to post results.
The European Central Bank (ECB) is meeting on Thursday with no expected changes in rates or guidelines, while preliminary data on plant activity worldwide is due to be released on Friday by April .
Elsewhere, Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency, recovered most of its losses after falling to 14% on Sunday after speculation that the US Treasury could try to crack down on money laundering activity of money within digital assets, NAB Catril said.
The data website CoinMarketCap cited a shutdown in the Chinese region of Xinjiang, which reportedly could drive a lot of bitcoin mining, for sale. Read more
The withdrawal in Bitcoin also comes after Turkey’s central bank on Friday banned the use of cryptocurrencies for purchases. Read more
Bitcoin has risen more than 90% a year so far, driven by its widespread acceptance as an investment and means of payment, accompanied by the rush of retail cash in stocks, publicly traded funds and other risky assets.
In foreign exchange, the US dollar fell for almost a minimum of four weeks against a basket of currencies as investors increasingly acquired the Federal Reserve’s insistence on maintaining an accommodative policy attitude for a longer period of time.
The dollar index measuring the green dollar against a six-currency basket remained unchanged at 91.612, not far from the lowest since it touched Friday on March 18th.
Against the Japanese yen, the greenback was void at 108.72. The euro was slightly lower at $ 1.1966, while the British pound fell 0.07% to $ 1.3820.
The risk-sensitive Australian dollar fell for the second day in a row to fall 0.2% to $ 0.7715.
In commodities, oil prices fell, with Brent falling 34 cents to $ 66.43 a barrel and U.S. crude falling 29 cents to $ 62.84.
Gold rose 0.2% to $ 1,779.3 an ounce.
Our standards: the principles of trust of Thomson Reuters.