U.S. Stock Futures Drop With Sentiment Fragile: Markets Wrap
U.S. equity futures declined in early trading, indicating the risk-off move that’s hit markets at the start of this month may have further to run.
S&P 500 futures opened about 1% lower after global stocks posted a more than 2% slide on Friday. The Australian dollar slipped along with the pound and euro, though moves for most major currency pairs were subdued. Trading volumes may be light due to holidays in China and Japan, and Treasuries won’t trade until the London open. Oil began the week on the back foot.
The more than 10% rally in world shares in April is being tested as investors assess efforts from countries starting to ease lockdown restrictions against fears of a second wave of infections and a steady steam of bad economic data. Earnings roll on this week, with firms including Disney, BMW, and Air France-KLM.
“While it is unlikely that we will retest the March lows, at least there is some chance that we head back toward the bottom of the April trading range -– which would be a further 7-10% downside from here, for most risk assets,” said Ciaran Mulhall, managing director at Solus Capital Partners Ltd.
| Read More |
|---|
| Bad Start to May Is a Sign of Things to Come for Global Markets |
| Pompeo Says ‘Enormous Evidence’ Connects Virus to Wuhan Lab |
| Global Oil Demand Starts a Long, Painful and Uncertain Recovery |
On the virus front, Gilead Sciences Inc. plans to get its drug remdesivir to patients within days after getting U.S. backing for emergency use. New York added the fewest new deaths in more than a month, while fatalities slowed in the U.K. and Italy.
Meantime, North Korean troops fired at their South Korean counterparts in the demilitarized zone that divides the two countries for the first time in years. The move came a day after Kim Jong Un resurfaced at a fertilizer factory, ending weeks of speculation about his whereabouts.
These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
- Futures on the S&P 500 Index dropped 1.1% as of 8:01 a.m. in Sydney. The gauge lost 2.8% on Friday.
- Futures on Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index slid 0.1%.
Currencies
- The yen was little changed at 106.83 per dollar.
- The euro bought $1.0971, down 0.1%.
- The offshore yuan was flat at 7.1349 per dollar.
- The pound fell 0.2% to $1.2481.
Bonds
- The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell three basis points to 0.61% on Friday.
Commodities
- West Texas Intermediate crude fell 3.8% to $19.05 a barrel.
- Gold was little changed at $1,698.75 an ounce.
Source: Read Full Article