Speeches by Powell and Lagarde could affect the tone in the global financial markets
Wall Street stocks finished at fresh record highs on Monday after Congress approved the infrastructure bill, sending it to Biden for his signature. As such, infrastructure-related stocks were among the biggest winners during the session. Mostly upbeat quarterly earnings keep adding to the bullish sentiment in the US markets. As such, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite erases early losses to finish marginally higher while the Dow Jones gained nearly 0.3%.
Asian stocks were mixed-to-lower on Tuesday. The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo failed to preserve early gains and shed 0.75% as the data showed that real wages in Japan declined in September for the first time in three months. Meanwhile, Japan’s PM Kishida said he wants to compile a further economic stimulus package on November 19. In China, another troubled property developer Kaisa said it needs external help to pay creditors. Still, the Shanghai Composite index gained 0.24% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 0.20%.
In Europe, equities opened in negative territory today, mirroring the sluggish mood in US futures, with investors getting more cautious as the key events loom. Later today, speeches by Powell and Lagarde could affect the tone in the global financial markets. Also, traders await the US PPI report, followed by Wednesday’s CPI data.
Meanwhile, the dollar keeps retreating from fresh yearly peaks seen late last week. The USD index is now back below the 94.00 figure, tracking a downbeat tone in Treasury yields. Still, the downside potential surrounding the US currency looks limited at this point. Furthermore, the greenback could see another rally if the upcoming inflation figures exceed expectations while Fed’s Powell refrains from dovish remarks on the outlook for the central bank’s monetary policy.
