Asian stock markets slipped on Tuesday, oil sagged and a safety bid supported the dollar as simmering Sino-U.S. tensions and fresh coronavirus restrictions in California kept a lid on investor optimism as earnings season gets underway.
Asian Stock
- MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 1.2 per cent.
- Japan’s Nikkei retreated from a one-month high touched on Monday, dropping 0.9 per cent.
Currency Markets
- Currency markets hemmed the dollar in a tight range, with the kiwi stalling its grind higher at $0.6535 and the Aussie sat at $0.6945.
- The euro hung on to overnight gains at $1.1343.
Oil Prices
- Oil prices, a proxy for global energy consumption and therefore growth expectations, reflected the growing worries. U.S crude futures fell 2.4 per cent to $39.14 per barrel.
- Brent futures fell 2.1 per cent to $41.81 per barrel.
Gold Price and Bonds
- Spot gold sat below recent peaks at $1.797.30 per ounce and U.S. Treasuries were firm.
- The yield on benchmark 10-year U.S. government debt was $0.6168 per cent.