Stocks advance on stimulus; US futures decline: markets wrap

Stocks climbed in Europe and Asia on Thursday as governments cranked up emergency-spending plans to confront the coronavirus. Futures on US equity indexes gave back some of Wednesday’s surge, while Treasuries rose.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index opened higher, with 17 of 19 industry groups advancing, and the Asian equities benchmark was set to advance for a fourth day. S&P 500 futures retreated after California declared a state of emergency due to the virus. The underlying gauge had jumped more than 4% on Wednesday in the wake of Congress authorising nearly $8 billion for virus prevention.

The Bank of Canada joined this week’s wave of global central bank actions and Australia’s finance minister on Thursday said stimulus will come very soon as speculation grew that governments will do more to combat the economic impact of the outbreak. The Treasuries yield curve steepened on Wednesday, a sign investors see more US stimulus coming.

As risk assets show signs of calming, traders remain on edge amid a rise in virus cases around the world and as many governments extend quarantines and travel restrictions. The S&P 500 has rallied about 6% this week, a rebound that began late Friday when the Federal Reserve pledged action. The gauge remains about 7.5% below last month’s all-time high.

Elsewhere, oil climbed amid a split between Saudi Arabia and Russia over whether deeper production cuts are required to offset the demand hit from the coronavirus epidemic. Emerging-market stocks rallied. Gold edged higher and the yen strengthened.

These are the main moves in markets:

Stocks

• The Stoxx Europe 600 Index increased 0.6% as of 8:12 a.m. London time.
• Germany’s DAX Index climbed 0.5%.
• Futures on the S&P 500 Index declined 1%.
• The MSCI Asia Pacific Index increased 1.2%.

Currencies

• The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed.
• The euro dipped 0.1%.
• The British pound gained 0.1% to $1.2882.
• The Japanese yen strengthened 0.2% to 107.28 per dollar.
• The South Korean Won strengthened 0.5% to 1,181.30 per dollar.

Bonds

• The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined four basis points to 1.02%.
• The yield on two-year Treasuries fell four basis points to 0.65%.
• Germany’s 10-year yield rose two basis points to -0.62%.
• Japan’s 10-year yield climbed one basis point to -0.112%.
• Australia’s 10-year yield climbed six basis points to 0.784%.

Commodities

• West Texas Intermediate crude increased 0.4% to $46.98 a barrel.
• Iron ore gained 1.4% to $89.44 per metric ton.
• Gold strengthened 0.1% to $1,638.60 an ounce.

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