Asia shares rise, oil slips as Suez Canal ship relaunch

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Asian stock markets edged higher on Monday, as oil prices fell as the ship blocking the Suez Canal was refloated, raising hopes that the vital waterway could reopen and ease the global shipping backlogs.

The news added to optimism about global growth as markets look to President Joe Biden to outline his infrastructure spending plans this week, which could supercharge an already accelerated recovery in the United States.

“We expect the global economy to grow robustly at 6.4% this year, fueled by a significant US fiscal stimulus, with spillovers to the rest of the world,” said Barclays economist Christian Keller.

“The rise in inflation over the next few months is expected to be transitory, and major central banks appear determined to give it some thought.”

The largest MSCI index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside of Japan rose 0.3%, with activity limited by the approaching end of the quarter. Chinese blue chips rose 0.8%.

Japan’s Nikkei gained 1%, although there was some nervousness when Nomura announced that its US unit could suffer a customer-related loss of $ 2 billion.

There has also been some caution after a wave of $ 20 billion in block trades hit the markets on Friday, apparently linked to investment fund Archegos Capital.

So far, futures on Nasdaq were down 0.6% and futures on S&P 500 were down 0.5%. EUROSTOXX 50 futures were able to rise 0.2%, while FTSE futures were flat.

The prospect of faster economic growth in the United States has sparked speculation about higher inflation and weighed on Treasury prices. Yields on US 10-year notes eased slightly to 1.66% on Monday, but were still not far from the recent 13-month high of 1.754%.

European yields were limited by active purchases from the European Central Bank, widening the yield advantage of the dollar against the euro. The single currency was last at $ 1.1786, after hitting a five-month low at $ 1.1760 last week.

TD Securities analysts noted that the euro found no advantage in a very strong German IfO survey on Friday, which showed corporate morale at an almost two-year high and signs of recovery in the securities sector. services.

“This suggests that market positioning still remains significantly biased towards the long side of EURUSD – even though the spot has seen a significant decline through the 200-day moving average,” they wrote in a note. “We continue to focus on downside risks from here.”

The dollar held steady at 109.50 yen, hitting its highest since early June on Friday at 109.84. The dollar index stood at 92.774, after hitting its highest since mid-November.

The rebound in yields weighed on gold, which offers no fixed yield, and left it at $ 1,730 an ounce.

Oil prices eased as markets assumed the re-float of the Ever Given would allow tankers to use the waterway again. There were more than 300 ships waiting to pass through the sea route, which accounts for 12% of world trade.

The market will also be cautious ahead of an OPEC meeting this week, which will have to decide whether to extend supply limits or loosen the taps. [O/R]

Brent fell 90 cents to $ 63.67 per barrel, while US crude fell $ 1.03 to $ 59.94 per barrel.