(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks rose along with U.S. and European equity futures Monday, aided by signs that China may take steps to support its economy. The pound fell on an omicron warning from U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
MSCI Inc.’s Asia-Pacific gauge advanced for the fourth session in five, with stocks in China outperforming. China’s top decision makers last week signaled policies may become more pro-growth next year. Economists predict the nation will start adding fiscal stimulus in early 2022.
S&P 500, Nasdaq 100 and European futures climbed. U.S. shares closed at a record Friday after an inflation print that was high but in line with predictions.
The Federal Reserve on Wednesday is expected to speed up stimulus withdrawal, and perhaps open the door to earlier interest-rate hikes in 2022 if price pressures stay near a four-decade peak. U.S. Treasury yields edged up, taking the 10-year rate to about 1.50%. The dollar pushed higher.
About 20 central banks are due to hold meetings this week, including the Fed, the European Central Bank and the Bank of England. Those decisions have the potential to stir market swings, as traders evaluate the resilience of global reopening to less generous monetary settings and coronavirus challenges.
“Global equities had a solid run last week and we’ll see if the goodwill lasts into what is a behemoth when it comes to event risk,” Chris Weston, head of research with Pepperstone Financial Pty Ltd., wrote in a note. Omicron and the Fed should dictate sentiment, he added.
Crypto Drop
In cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin and Ether fell. An affiliate of Binance, the world’s biggest crypto exchange, withdrew its application for a license to run a digital-token exchange in Singapore.
Elsewhere, crude oil extended gains in the wake of its biggest weekly advance in more than three months.
On the virus front, Johnson warned the U.K. is facing a “tidal wave” of omicron infections and set an end-of-year deadline for the country’s booster vaccination program.
Geopolitics remain in focus. Foreign ministers from the Group of Seven nations on Sunday warned Russia to de-escalate its activities around Ukraine or face “massive consequences.”
Bloomberg’s Markets Live team is running a survey on asset views for 2022. It’s anonymous, takes about 2 minutes, and the results will be shared in the latter part of December. To participate, click here.
Here are some key events this week:
- The U.S. Federal Open Market Committee starts its two-day policy meeting. Tuesday
- China releases November industrial output, retail sales data. Wednesday
- FOMC rate decision and Powell news conference. Wednesday
- Rate decisions from Indonesia, Philippines, Mexico, Bank of England, European Central Bank (Christine Lagarde briefing), Norway, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey. Thursday
- Markit manufacturing PMI: Eurozone, France, Germany, U.K., Australia. Thursday
- Rate decisions from Colombia, Japan, Russia. Friday
Stocks
- S&P 500 futures rose 0.4% as of 12:18 p.m. in Tokyo. The S&P 500 rose 1% Friday
- Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.4%. The Nasdaq 100 rose 1.1%
- Japan’s Topix index rose 0.4%
- Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index advanced 0.6%
- South Korea’s Kospi index gained 0.5%
- Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 1%
- China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 1%
- Euro Stoxx 50 futures climbed 0.6%
Currencies
- The Japanese yen traded at 113.55 per dollar
- The offshore yuan was at 6.3664 per dollar
- The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.1%
- The euro traded at $1.1296
Bonds
- The yield on 10-year Treasuries rose about two basis points to 1.50%
- Australia’s 10-year bond yield was at 1.63%, down one basis point
Commodities
- West Texas Intermediate crude rose 1.5% to $72.74 a barrel
- Gold was at $1,786.07 an ounce, up 0.2%
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