Opening Call: The Australian share market is to open higher.
U.S. stocks eased off record highs. The 10-year Treasury note yield ticked down to 1.15%, from 1.159% Monday. The WSJ Dollar Index was down 0.46% to 85.29. U.S. benchmark crude oil ended higher for the seventh-straight session. Gold prices ended higher for a third-straight session.
Australian Market
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index fell 0.9%, with all sectors ending the day in the red. Property trusts and industrials were the worst-performing sectors.
US Market
U.S. stocks were mixed, suggesting that the major indexes may pause after closing recently at record highs.
The S&P 500 was down about 0.1% as of the 4 p.m. close of trading in New York, a day after the benchmark gauge posted its eighth all-time closing high of 2021.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was flat. The technology-focused Nasdaq Composite Index rose 0.1%. Investors said markets are taking a breather following a broad advance in stocks and commodities.
Commodities
Gold futures rose, extending their gains to the third session in a row to mark their highest settlement in more than a week.
Gold for April delivery added $3.30, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,836.00 an ounce, the highest most-active contract finish since Feb. 1, FactSet data show.
Oil Futures
Oil futures moved up, shaking off earlier weakness, as signs of improving energy demand prompted global benchmark prices totally an eighth consecutive session gain.
April Brent crude tacked on 53 cents or 0.9%, to end at $61.13 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe. The rise marked its eighth in a row, the longest run since February 2020. The U.S. benchmark — West Texas Intermediate crude for March delivery — rose 39 cents, or 0.7%, to settle at $58.33 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, with front-month prices scoring a seventh consecutive session of gains. That is the longest streak of gains since the eight-session rise ended Feb. 22, 2019, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
Forex
Major currencies were stronger against the US dollar in European and US trade. The Euro rose from lows near US$1.2065 to highs near US$1.2120 and was near US$1.2115 in late US trade. The Aussie dollar rose from lows near US77.05 cents to highs near US77.40 cents and was near US77.35 cents in late US trade. And the Japanese yen rose from 104.90 yen per US dollar to JPY104.50 yen and was near JPY104.55 in late US trade.
European Markets
European sharemarkets were mixed on Tuesday as investors consolidated recent gains. Utilities fell 1.6% and oil & gas fell 1.3% while luxury rose 1.0% and healthcare lifted 0.6%. Shares in energy major, Total, fell 1.8% in response to earnings news. The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell by 0.1%. The German Dax index fell by 0.3%. But the UK FTSE index lifted 0.1%, led by homebuilders. In London trade shares in Rio Tinto rose by 0.2% but shares in BHP fell by 0.5%.
Asian Markets
The Nikkei Stock Average ended 0.4% higher, supported by mining companies and brokerages. Coronavirus-related developments are being closely watched, following media reports that the Japanese government plans to lift emergency measures in three prefectures where new Covid-19 cases have fallen substantially.
Mainland China’s major stock benchmarks posted gains, as the market continued to rebound from consecutive losses over the past week. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 2.0%, its largest one-day percentage gain in nearly a month, extending recovery after suffering a three-day losing streak last week. The Shenzhen Composite Index gained 2.4%, while the ChiNext Price Index grew 1.7%. The petroleum and chemical industry-led the upturn.
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