U.S. Equity Futures Advance Before Powell Speaks: Markets Wrap - Yahoo Finance

U.S. Equity Futures Advance Before Powell Speaks: Markets Wrap

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U.S. equity futures climbed alongside stocks in Europe and Asia on Tuesday, with investors once again pushing benchmarks toward record highs as they await commentary from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. Oil rose and Treasuries slipped.

Contracts on the three main American gauges pared gains but remained in the green ahead of Powell’s testimony before Congress, where the Fed chair may give hints on monetary policy and how the expanding coronavirus outbreak from China is influencing policymakers. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index jumped to an intraday record led by miners. Benchmarks in Hong Kong and Seoul rose at least 1%, while the gauge in Shanghai advanced for a sixth session. Markets in Japan were shut for a holiday.

Equities seem to be enjoying momentum following another record close in the U.S. on Monday. Takeover target Sprint Corp. soared more than 60% in the pre-market after T-Mobile US Inc.’s $26.5 billion bid was said to be poised for court approval. The dollar nudged lower versus a basket of its major peers.

Investors have turned more bullish lately despite the novel epidemic, signaling some confidence that central banks will ease policy in the event growth slows down. They’re also focused on how companies address the virus’s impact, with earnings due this week from firms such as Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Credit Suisse Group AG and Airbus SE.

“At the margin, we have to consider that the rebound in growth we were expecting over 2020 may be either delayed or somewhat less vigorous than we were anticipating due to the impact of the virus,” Mark Robertson, head of multistrategy at Aviva Investors, said in an interview in Sydney. “But ongoing monetary policy support, especially what was delivered last year, a reduction in uncertainty around trade wars, should still be a tail wind.”

Elsewhere, oil futures clawed back some losses after hitting a one-year low in New York trading.

Here are some key events coming up:

Earnings season continues with reports including MGM Resorts International and Softbank on Wednesday; Thursday will bring Alibaba, Nissan, Credit Suisse, Airbus, Nestle and AIG.A key contest for Democrat presidential hopefuls unfolds Tuesday, when the state of New Hampshire holds a primary vote.Fed Chairman Powell delivers his semiannual testimony on monetary policy in Congress on Tuesday and Wednesday; ECB President Christine Lagarde speaks at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Tuesday.Thursday sees a gauge of underlying U.S. inflation, the core consumer price index. It is forecast to increase to 0.2% in January, a faster pace than in December.China and the U.S. on Friday lower tariffs on billions of dollars of respective imports as part of the trade deal signed last month.

These are the main moves in markets:

Stocks

Futures on the S&P 500 Index increased 0.2% as of 7:20 a.m. New York time.The Stoxx Europe 600 Index advanced 0.7%.Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.4%.The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 0.5%.The MSCI World Index of developed countries climbed 0.1%.

Currencies

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index declined 0.1%.The euro was little changed at $1.0914.The Japanese yen weakened 0.1% to 109.84 per dollar.The Turkish lira weakened 0.4% to 6.0354 per dollar.

Bonds

The yield on 10-year Treasuries increased two basis points to 1.59%.Germany’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to -0.39%.Britain’s 10-year yield gained two basis points to 0.577%.Japan’s 10-year yield was unchanged at -0.055%.

Commodities

West Texas Intermediate crude gained 1.8% to $50.48 a barrel.Gold weakened 0.2% to $1,569.63 an ounce.LME aluminum increased 0.6% to $1,713 per metric ton.Iron ore advanced 2% to $84.97 per metric ton.

--With assistance from Andrew Cinko and Andreea Papuc.

To contact the reporter on this story: Todd White in Madrid at twhite2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Christopher Anstey at canstey@bloomberg.net, Yakob Peterseil

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