Thursday Morning Briefing: Dow Conquers 21,000, Asia Opens Strong
Asian stocks jumped after Wall Street set new records overnight on growing optimism about global growth, and rising bets of a rate hike in the U.S. this month.
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index climbed for the fifth straight day after two Federal Reserve officials said the case for lifting borrowing costs on March 15 has strengthened.
From Trump To Fed
Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brainard supported the case for an interest-rate hike “soon”, in a speech at Harvard University.
Assuming continued progress, it will likely be appropriate soon to remove additional accommodation, continuing on a gradual path.Lael Brainard, Federal Reserve Governor
Brainard's comments come close on the heels of hawkish statements from New York Fed President William Dudley and San Francisco Fed President John Williams on Tuesday.
The odds of a rate hike at the Fed's March 14-15 meeting jumped to 80 percent, from 34 percent just a week ago, according to federal funds futures tracked by Bloomberg. Fed Chair Janet Yellen is scheduled to speak at an event in Chicago on Friday.
U.S. equities rallied on Wednesday even though President Donald Trump offered few new proposals and made no suggestions on how he would pay for his plans. Trump promised to provide tax cuts for companies and middle-class citizens, invest $1 trillion in infrastructure, and increase defence spending in his maiden speech to Congress.
The S&P 500 Index jumped 1.4 percent to a record 2,395.88, its biggest gain of the year while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 302.63 points to climb above 21,000 for the first time. Financial stocks surged 2.8 percent, the most since November 10.
Also Read: Dow Passes 21,000, Dollar Jumps as Rate Hike Looms
Oil Holds Losses
Oil held losses after government data showed U.S. crude stockpiles rose to a record, countering efforts by Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries and other nations to curb global surplus.
Brent crude for April settlement dropped 0.3 percent to $56.36 per barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange while West Texas Intermediate for April delivery declined 9 cents to $53.74 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Also Read: Fading Trump Hopes Send Russian Stocks Sliding Most in World
Strong Start?
The SGX Nifty Index jumped 0.58 percent to 9,027.5 as of 7:10 a.m., indicating a positive start for the Indian markets.
Indian shares snapped a two-day losing streak on Wednesday as investors cheered better-than-expected economic growth data.
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