Oil is returning to pre-epidemic levels and a recovery in global stock markets
Oil is returning to pre-epidemic levels and a recovery in global stock markets:
There is an official holiday in the United States of America today,
so we do not expect that anything affecting the economic arena as a whole will happen,
and the focus remains on the American relief package,
in addition to the developments of the epidemiological situation in the world,
given the fact that the number of infections around the world has decreased in the last month or so.
Vaccines seem to be starting to show their power now.
Evest follows up with you on the developments in the commodity and forex markets on a daily basis.
Oil compensates for all the losses of the epidemic
Crude oil managed to extend its gains Monday as a barrel of West Texas Intermediate rose 2.19% to $ 60.77 a barrel,
the highest level since January 2020.
This is due to the fact that the United States is now experiencing a cold weather wave,
which made investors anticipate its impact on Production.
A barrel of West Texas Intermediate crude crossed the $ 60 barrel on Monday;
it is now in its best condition compared to before the epidemic.
Crude oil has been heading up for several months as a result of renewed optimism about the future of the global economy,
hope raised from the massive US stimulus package,
and the belief that a slowdown in infections and the launch of vaccination campaigns will restore a form of normality, thus encouraging demand.
Last week, Brent had already crossed the $ 60 barrier.
Both contracts have had a 20% gain since the start of the year.
Saudi Arabia’s announcement last month of cutting production in February and March also supported prices.
Recently, the price of WTI was also boosted by forecasts of a possible drop in production in
Texas due to the hail wave shut down some wells, caused blackouts, and disrupted transportation.
Gold is stable
The price of gold stabilized on Monday morning, and gold futures for April delivery rose 1.30$ to $ 1,824.50 an ounce.
Positive trading in the global stock market
The Tokyo Stock Exchange Nikkei index closed above 30,000 points on Monday,
for the first time since August 1990, after breaking new Wall Street records on Friday,
amid hopes of adopting a new US stimulus plan.
The main Nikkei index, which has not crossed this symbolic threshold at closing since August 2, 1990,
rose to 30,084.15 points, up 1.91%.
However, the Nikkei is still a long way from the absolute record that was signed at the end of 1989,
when it exceeded 38,915 points. The Topix Expanded Index rose 1.04% at 1953.94 points
Financial markets are awaiting the swift arrival of President Joe Biden’s stimulus package to support US homes and businesses that have been hit by the crisis.
Toshikazu Horiuchi of Ioikosmo Securities told AFP that the Tokyo Stock Exchange was supported by hopes of an economic recovery in Japan.
Japan’s gross domestic product rebounded above expectations in the fourth quarter of 2020,
rising 3% in one quarter, according to preliminary figures released on Monday.
Over the year as a whole, the Japanese economy has decreased by 4.8% due to the impact of the epidemic.
Since last spring, the market has taken full advantage of the aligned monetary policies of central banks, including the Bank of Japan,
and government budget support measures in the face of the epidemic.
The coronavirus vaccine from Pfizer and Biontech also became the first vaccine approved in Japan on Sunday,
and it is a vaccine beneficial to investor sentiment,
even if the Japanese authorities only plan to vaccinate professionals from immediate health care.
Stock Market
The FTSE 100 is expected to open 0.4% this morning at 6639.8,
in addition to the EURO STOXX index rising 0.4% today at 3,719.5,
and the French CAC 40 is expected to open 0.6% higher at 5743.6.
In the US, the Dow Jones index took a break on Friday and closed with little change.
However, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 rose slightly.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which rose the previous day to another record high at 15,543 points,
closed on Friday, up 0.09% at 31,458.40.
The index recorded a weekly gain of approximately 1%.
The Standard & Poor’s Index closed up 0.47% at 3,934.83 points,
and the Nasdaq 100 index rose 0.53% to 13,807.70 points.
There will be no trading in New York on Monday to mark “George Washington Day.”
A new push for the euro, the dollar, and the yen are under pressure
Market watchers spoke of a weak dollar, which in turn gave the euro a boost.
The generally positive mood in the financial markets, with some big price gains in the Asian equity markets,
has affected the US dollar.
A similar development has also emerged in the Japanese yen,
which investors also value as a safe investment.
The current increased investor appetite for risk has put the Yen under pressure in trading against all of the other major currencies.
On the other hand, among the winners in the foreign exchange market was the pound sterling,
which was able to achieve gains against almost all major currencies,
supporting progress in the Corona vaccination program.
15 million doses of the Corona vaccine have now been given in the United Kingdom.
Oil is returning to pre-epidemic levels and a recovery in global stock markets