by On Tuesday, global stock markets were holding the line on their all-time highs after receiving a boost from a US infrastructure bill worth $1 trillion. However, investors appeared to be reluctant to make any further contributions to the rally, as they are more focused on getting a clearer picture regarding the US inflation data that’s scheduled for later in the week. There was a 0.2% increase in the pan-European STOXX 600 index, which brought it just short of a peak high it reached last week. However, late morning trading saw both German and French blue chips hit new milestones.
There was also a slight increase of 0.05% in the MSCI’s gauge of world stocks, which brought it just a point away from its uncharted highs. Across the Atlantic, there was a mixed response seen in US stock futures, only a day after benchmark Wall Street indexes like Nasdaq and the S&P 500 extended their all-time closing high runs for the eighth consecutive session. Market analysts said that there has been a strong and fast climb seen in the markets and a vigorous rebound has also been seen, but the catalyst that was delivered by third-quarter earnings is nearing its end.
It was also worth noting that market positioning wasn’t anywhere close to extreme and that a number of investors had remained prudent moving forward, even though the rally was not under any imminent threat. Market appeared to be ready to digest the good news that central banks were not planning on hiking the interest rates any time soon and the upbeat corporate earnings that were recently reported. Back in October, fixed-income markets had experienced a sell-off because of concerns about a tightening monetary policy. However, since then, government bond yields have reversed their course.
The 10-year Treasury notes saw a decline on Tuesday to reach 1.465%, while the German 10-year Bund also fell to -0.275% once more. Yields for both the eurozone and US benchmark are trading close to lows of one month. However, market analysts appear eager to get their hands on the data of US consumer prices that are scheduled for release on Wednesday, as the Federal Reserve will be pushed to increase interest rates earlier than expected if the reading turns out to be stronger than expected. The dollar index remained flat at 94.04, tracking the currency against six others, whereas the yen jumped against the greenback to reach a one-month high.
As far as the crypto market is concerned, Bitcoin was trading slightly below its new record high of $68,564. Oil prices also climbed up slightly because of the US infrastructure bill and the export growth in China also indicated energy demand. Aramco, the state-owned producer in Saudi Arabia, also raised their official selling price. There was a 0.35% increase in US crude, as its prices reached $82.22 per barrel. There was a 0.26% jump in Brent crude, as it reached $83.64 per barrel. There was a slight fall in spot gold, as it reached a value of $1,823.800 per ounce.
