Asian shares briefly brushed seven-month peaks on Monday as investors cheered a rebound in U.S. payrolls and hints of more stimulus in China, but caution soon surfaced ahead of what is likely to be a tough U.S. earnings season.
Asian Shares
- Japan’s Nikkei was off 0.1 percent after reaching its high of the year so far.
- E-Mini futures for the S&P 500 eased 0.2 percent and futures pointed to a soft start for the major European bourses.
- Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.1 percent at 21,789.34.
- Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 3,261.06.
Currency
- Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3048 from $1.3035 at 2040 GMT on Friday.
- Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.01 pence from 86.05 pence.
- Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1223 from $1.1216. Not far from its recent 20-month trough at $1.1174.
- Dollar/yen: DOWN at 111.47 yen from 111.70 yen.
Commodities
- In commodity markets, spot gold was a fraction firmer at $1,296.52 per ounce.
- Oil prices rose to their highest levels since Nov. 2018, driven by OPEC’s ongoing supply cuts and U.S. sanctions against Iran and Venezuela.
- U.S. crude was last up 28 cents at $63.36 a barrel, while Brent crude futures rose 29 cents to $70.63.
