Asian shares and Wall Street futures rallied on Tuesday as the formal start of the Federal Reserve’s corporate bond buying programme boosted global investor sentiment and calmed earlier worries about a second wave of coronavirus infections.
Asian shares
- MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 2.2%, its biggest one-day gain since June 1. Australian stocks rose 3.0%, while shares in China rose 1.2%.
- US stock futures, the S&P 500 e-minis, were up 0.98% following a late rally on Wall Street on Monday.
- Japan’s Nikkei stock index and shares in South Korea were both on course for their biggest daily gain in two months.
Currency Markets
- The Australian dollar rose 0.31% to $0.6942.
- The Aussie is often traded as a liquid proxy for risk because of its close ties to China’s economy and global commodities.
- The yen was little changed at 107.32 per dollar before a Bank of Japan meeting ending later on Tuesday.
Oil Prices
- Crude oil futures erased gains and fell amid persistent doubts over whether supply cuts would be enough to reduce an oil glut.
- US crude fell 1.2% to $36.68 a barrel. Brent crude declined by 1.2% to $39.23 per barrel.
