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© Reuters. A man wearing a face mask walks past a stock quotation board outside a brokerage house amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in Tokyo
By Andrew Galbraith
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – Asian stocks rose on Monday, pushing a broad regional index to an all-time high as investors placed their hopes for an economic boost on coronavirus vaccines, even as the world faces a surge in numbers of cases and delays towards a new American recovery.
European investors shared the brighter outlook in early trade, with a pan-regional gain of 0.29%, German 0.26% up and futures up 0.21%.
The new investor optimism comes after a senior official in the U.S. government vaccine development effort said on Sunday that the first vaccines could be given to U.S. healthcare workers and others recommended by mid -December.
Despite the grim backdrop of accelerating COVID-19 infections in the United States, the forecasts have helped raise hopes that the lockdowns that have crippled the global economy may be coming to an end.
“With the vaccine underway and the likelihood that the economic damage from the virus will go away, we will still have substantial support in place from central banks and governments. And it’s an economic sweet spot that should see a significant economic rebound, ”said Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets in Sydney.
“It is fascinating that investors are willing to focus on this aspect. It requires a bit of squinting, including an analysis of the rising infection rates that we are currently seeing. But there is real optimism around this. . “
The total number of COVID-19 cases in the United States exceeded 12 million over the weekend and more than 255,000 people have died.
The largest MSCI index for Asia-Pacific stocks outside of Japan rose 0.71% on Monday, breaking a previous record set on Friday.
Seoul’s Kospi rose 1.83% as the optimistic earnings outlook for South Korean chip giants led to gains.
Japanese markets were closed for a holiday, but futures added 0.27% to 25,815.
The regional index also received a boost from Australian stocks which gained 0.34% as the country eased some restrictions from COVID-19. Most of the country has not seen any new infections or deaths in the community for several weeks.
Chinese blue chips added 1.54%.
Analysts said the gains belied fragile sentiment as monetary and fiscal assistance to the US economy remained elusive.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Thursday that the Federal Reserve’s major pandemic lending programs would expire on December 31, putting the outgoing Trump administration at odds with the central bank and potentially increasing the stress of the ‘economy.
“The discussion is only just beginning and may take some time if recent partisan disagreements over the composition and size of budget spending are any indication,” ANZ analysts said in a note.
US e-mini futures for the were 0.27% higher at 3,564 on Monday after US stocks collapsed on Friday on a combination of the decline in aid to the US economy and the rise rates of infection with the novel coronavirus.
The was down 0.75%, the S&P 500 was down 0.68%, and the ended down 0.42%.
In currency markets, the rising safe haven yen underscored lingering investor concerns. The dollar softened 0.12% to 103.73 while the euro gained 0.18% on the day to $ 1.1874.
The, which follows the greenback against a basket of six big rivals, came down to 92.250.
Commodities markets were more bullish, with traders optimistic that a recovery in crude demand would push oil higher.
The global benchmark index rose 0.58% to $ 45.22 per barrel and 0.28% to $ 42.54 per barrel.
added 0.19% to $ 1,874.06 an ounce. [GOL/]
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