In Europe, stocks stuck close to flat levels to start the day
Wall Street stocks finished mostly higher overnight after Pfizer said an early peek at its vaccine data suggests the shots may be 90% effective at preventing COVID-19. Earlier, markets were climbing on the news that Democrat Joe Biden clinched the last of the electoral votes needed to become the next president. As a result, the S&P 500 rose 1.17%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 2.9%, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 1.5% as tech stocks came under pressure.
Asian markets were mostly positive on Tuesday on hopes for progress toward a possible coronavirus vaccine. The Nikkei 225 rose 0.25% and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong added 1.09%. Meanwhile, the Shanghai Composite Index shed 0.40% after the data showed that China’s inflation fell in October to its lowest level in a decade.
In Europe, investors shrugged off the early retracement in futures, and stocks stuck close to flat levels to start the day. The S&P 500 futures also pared early losses, though Nasdaq futures were down by 0.3% still as tech equities continued to underperform since the vaccine news on Monday. Considering a more tepid start to European morning trade, it looks like investors are seeking for fresh direction on the day.
Meanwhile, the greenback came under renewed selling pressure on Tuesday though the downside potential looks limited so far. Nevertheless, GBPUSD climbed to fresh two-month highs above 1.3200 in recent trading, benefiting from Pfizer vaccine optimism. The pair rose to 1.3225 for the first time since early-September and could target the 1.3275 next immediate resistance if the buying pressure persists down the road. Uncertainty surrounding Brexit talks could cap demand for the sterling in the days to come.
Elsewhere, gold prices are licking wounds after a sharp sell-off witnessed on Monday. The bullion briefly plunged to late-September lows around $1,850 to start the week while trimming losses to the $1,890 area on Tuesday. The precious metal is yet to regain the $1,900 and the ley moving average to shrug off the downside pressure in the short term.
