The House passed President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, sending it to the Senate
Asian equities gained on Monday, as investors were cheering the news that the House passed President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, sending it to the Senate. The reports prompting banks and investors to lift their forecasts for economic growth, especially as virus cases continue to decline. Besides, yields on U.S. 10-year notes retreated from last week’s peaks around 1.60%, adding to market optimism at the beginning of spring.
As such, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 surged 2.4%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng advanced 1.63%, while the Shanghai Composite rose 1.2%. In Australia, S&P/ASX 200 jumped 1.74% after the Reserve Bank has doubled the size of its daily bond purchases from $2 billion to $4 billion. On the data front, China’s February Caixin PMI declined to 50.9 from January’s 51.5. South Korean markets were closed for a national holiday.
In Europe, stocks opened in the green, extending the global rally due to the news from the United States, with U.S. stock futures rising further as Treasury yields continue to retreat from their highs. The pan-European Stoxx 600 jumped 1.7% in early trade. As for the data, Eurozone February’s final manufacturing PMI arrived at 57.9 versus the preliminary estimate of 57.7 while in Germany, the final manufacturing PMI came in at 60.7 versus 60.6. slightly better figures added to the upbeat tone in the regional markets as well.
Meanwhile, the dollar regained a bullish bias following a short-lived retreat witnessed earlier in the day. The USD index now struggles for direction as traders are getting more cautious ahead of the ISM manufacturing data and Markit’s final PMIs for the month of February due later today. If the numbers exceed expectations, the greenback could stage a more robust ascent, but dovish Fed speakers may cap potential gains.
