The Japanese government is preparing to extend the emergency to curb coronavirus infections
Wall Street stocks finished mixed on Friday, as inflation concerns persisted albeit eased somehow. On the positive side, the IHS Markit flash U.S. manufacturing PM jumped to an all-time high of 61.5 in May from 60.5 in April. Meanwhile, BioNTech said that the COVID-19 vaccine it developed with U.S. pharmaceutical group Pfizer is likely to be effective against the Indian variant of coronavirus. As such, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq shed 0.08% and 0.48%, respectively, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.36%.
Today in Asia, equities were mixed-to-higher in muted trading. Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 0.17% despite the reports that the country’s government is preparing to extend the emergency to curb coronavirus infections in some areas. Elsewhere, South Korea’s Kospi slipped 0.38%, Australia’s S&P/ASX inched up 0.22%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 0.16%, and the Shanghai Composite advanced 0.31%.
European stocks opened higher on Monday, trading close to record highs, with the Stoxx Europe 600 edging up 0.1%. Trading activity is subdued as many regional markets closed in observance of Whit Monday. US futures are trading slightly higher, with S&P 500 futures up 0.3%.
Meanwhile, the dollar is mostly on the defensive as positive risk sentiment prevails at the start of the week. EURUSD reversed north following Friday’s losses but still lacks upside momentum to get back above the 1.2200 figure that represents the immediate target for euro bulls at the moment. On the downside, the nearest support arrives at 1.2160, followed by last week’s lows around 1.2125. In the short term, the common currency could preserve upside bias but the upside potential will likely stay limited.