Wall Street stocks finished slightly higher on Tuesday but ended the session well off highs as investors turned more cautious. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.6%, the S&P 500 index added 0.9%, while the Nasdaq Composite index rose by 1.1%. Equities managed to stay afloat due to a rally in oil prices amid hopes for a recovery in global energy demand.
Today in Asia, stocks rose in a modest manner as oil prices pared overnight gains. South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.76%, China’s Shanghai Composite added 0.63%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index advanced 1.34%. Meanwhile, In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.42% despite retail sales in March rose 8.5%, above expectations of an 8.2% increase. Markets in Japan were closed on Wednesday for holidays.
European stock markets opened flat and turned mixed afterward following the report that showed Germany factory orders saw the biggest drop on record in March. Meanwhile, Eurozone April final services PMI came in at 12.0 versus the preliminary estimate of 11.7. The report confirmed that the region’s economy saw a record contraction in business activity last month. In Germany, April final services PMI arrived at 16.2 versus the 15.9 preliminary figure.
In currencies, the euro remains under the selling pressure and has already derailed the 1.08 handle, which is another bearish technical signal in the short-term charts. The EURUSD pair has been suffering losses for the third day in a row after a rejection from local highs marginally above 1.10, where the 100- and 200-DMA lie. Dismal economic data out of Germany and the Eurozone added to the bearish sentiment surrounding the common currency. Should the prices confirm a break below 1.08, the next 1.0760 support area will come into market focus.
Elsewhere, bitcoin finished flat on Tuesday and regained the $9,000 handle on Wednesday. However, the leading cryptocurrency by market capitalization is yet to confirm the latest breakout on a daily closing basis as the upside bias remains unsustainable. Once above the $9,100 region, BTCUSD will retarget the $9,500 resistance.
