The RBA raised its interest rates for the first time since 2010
US stock markets advanced modestly on Monday due to dip buying, with the S&P 500 bouncing north in the last hour. After hitting new lows for the year earlier in the session, the Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.63%. The S&P 500 rose 0.57% and the Dow Jones gained 0.26%. in individual stocks, Netflix and Meta Platforms both rallied about 5%.
Asian stock markets edged down on Tuesday. South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.26%, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 declined 0.11%. The S&P/ASX 200 gave up 0.42% after the RBA raised its interest rates for the first time since 2010. RBA’s Lowe said he expects that further rate hikes will be necessary in the months ahead. Markets in China and Hong Kong were closed for the Labor Day holiday.
European equities opened in positive territory, bouncing after a plunge witnessed at the start of the week. The pan-European Stoxx 600 climbed 0.6% in early trade. U.S. stock futures were marginally higher in early premarket deals. In general, investors refrain from making large bets ahead of the Federal Reserve’s and the Bank of England’s policy decisions later this week.
In currencies, the USD index stays resilient above the 103.00 figure, albeit the upside momentum has weakened somehow this week. The buck finished higher on Monday as the yield on the US 10-year Treasury note touched 3% for the first time since late 2018 before correcting slightly lower today. Against this backdrop, EURUSD dipped back to 1.0500 at the start of the week while trying to regain the bullish bias in early European deals. The pair still lacks the impetus to overcome the 1.0600 immediate barrier ahead of the Fed’s two-day meeting.
