Investors cheer the decision by Trump to sign a coronavirus economic aid package
Overnight, Wall Street stocks climbed to fresh all-time highs as investors cheered the decision by President Donald Trump to sign a $900 billion coronavirus economic aid package along with to fund government agencies, averting a federal government shutdown. As such, the S&P 500 gained 0.87%, the Dow Jones climbed 0.68%, and the Nasdaq rose 0.74%.
Most Asian markets advanced on Tuesday, digesting upbeat news from the United States, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 index breaching a nearly 30-year high. The index jumped 2.66% and was trading above 27,000 for the first time since April 1991. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index rose nearly 1% while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.53%. Meanwhile, the Shanghai Composite index in China bucked the trend and slipped 0.54%.
In Europe, equities opened higher following a rally in U.S. stocks, with the pan-European Stoxx 600 index rising 0.68% at the open. Traders reacted positively to the reports that the House voted Monday to increase the second round of federal direct payments to $2,000 from $600. Positive sentiment in the region is also due to a Brexit trade deal that was agreed between the EU and U.K. the deal will be formally implemented on January 1. As such, London’s FTSE 100 index opened 1.6% higher Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the dollar is back under pressure against most rivals amid a widespread risk-on tone. Against this backdrop, EURUSD was challenging the 1.2250 intermediate resistance after the opening bell in Europe while GBPUSD bounced from the 20-DMA and exceeded the 1.3500 figure after a brief dip to 1.3430.
Elsewhere, crude oil prices have settled in a tightening range, clinging to the $51 handle on Tuesday. It looks unlikely that Brent will be able to overcome the $52 figure before the end of the month and the year as trading conditions are too thin now.
