OPENING CALL: The Australian share market is to open higher. SPI Futures contract to opened 28 points higher.
JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co. said Tuesday they took large hits to their second-quarter profits to collectively stockpile $28 billion to cover losses as consumers and businesses start to default on their loans.
The decision follows British condemnation of China’s imposition of a new security law over the former British territory of Hong Kong. A growing body of British lawmakers from the ruling Conservative Party have been pressing the government to take tougher action against China and recognize it as an adversary.
Australian Market
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index closed 0.6% lower at 5941.1, following a slump in tech stocks and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite earlier, ending a three-session winning streak.
US Market
U.S. stocks turned higher as investors parsed earnings results from the biggest banks for insights on the health of the American economy and its lenders. The S&P 500 rose 0.5% after wavering earlier in the session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose more than 375 points, or 1.5%. The Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.1%.
Commodities
Gold futures posted a modest loss, holding ground above the key $1,800 an ounce mark. August gold fell 70 cents, or 0.04%, to settle at $1,813.40 an ounce.
Oil Futures
Crude-oil prices finished slightly higher, with traders awaiting outcome of Wednesday’s OPEC+ Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee meeting as well as this week’s updates on U.S. petroleum supplies. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 19 cents, or 0.5%, to settle at $40.29 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Forex
Major currencies were firmer against the US dollar in European and US trade. The Euro rose from lows near US$1.1325 to highs near US$1.1405 and was near US$1.1390 at the US close. The Aussie dollar rose from lows near US69.20 cents to highs near US69.75 cents and was near US69.70 cents at the US close. The Japanese yen lifted from 107.40 yen per US dollar to JPY107.15 and was near JPY107.28 at the US close.
European Markets
European sharemarkets were mixed on Tuesday. Technology under-performed. However in the UK, blue-chips out-performed on a boost for telecoms and energy sectors. Shares in BT rose 4.1% after UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson ordered equipment from Chinese telecom equipment maker Huawei be banned from Britain’s 5G network by 2027. The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell by 0.8%. The German Dax also fell 0.8% but the UK FTSE index edged 0.1% higher. In London trade shares in Rio Tinto rose by 1.4% with shares in BHP up by 0.8%
Asian Markets
Earlier in the day in Asia, Japanese stocks ended lower, dragged by falls in electronics and consumer-goods producers amid uncertainty over the pace of recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. The Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.9% to 22587.01. China’s main stocks gauge, the Shanghai Composite Index, declined 0.8%. The Shenzhen Composite Index ended 0.9% Lower at 2309.57.
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