U.S.Stocks climb to records with virus impact unknown
U.S. stocks continued their push higher even as the economic impact from the deadly coronavirus remains murky. Treasuries were mixed, and gold advanced.
The S&P 500 Index's four-day rally hit 3.7% as major equity benchmarks added to all-time highs on the strength of solid corporate results and signs that central banks stand ready to act if growth falters. The torrid ascent has some firms warning about a sense of euphoria taking over among investors, especially as the coronavirus epidemic continues to spread and China's economy remains virtually locked down. Treasuries edged higher and gold climbed in a sign of some demand for haven assets.
In corporate news, Boeing spiked 3.6% after saying it fixed a software bug in its grounded plane. Twitter Inc. rallied 15% after topping projections for fourth-quarter revenue. Strong results helped powered the Stoxx Europe 600 Index to a record. Crude oil edged above $51 a barrel in New York.
"A lot of the moves this week have been explained by a relief rally that the coronavirus seems to be slowing somewhat, clearly there was a lot of uncertainty embedded in market behavior coming in," said Mark Heppenstall, chief investment officer at Penn Mutual Asset Management. "It does still have a number of question marks still out there."
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Here are some key events coming up:
- A report on German industrial production is due Friday.
- The U.S. employment report for January is set for Friday release.
- Australia's central bank chief speaks and takes questions at a parliamentary committee.
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And these are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
- The S&P 500 Index rose 0.3% as of 4 p.m. New York time.
- The Stoxx Europe 600 Index increased 0.4%.
- The MSCI Asia Pacific Index increased 1.8%.
- The MSCI Emerging Market Index gained 1.3%.
Currencies
- The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2%.
- The euro fell 0.2% to $1.098.
- The onshore yuan was little changed at 6.9708 per dollar.
- The Japanese yen fell 0.1% to 109.98 per dollar.
Bonds
- The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell one basis point, to 1.65%.
- Germany's 10-year yield fell one basis point, to -0.37%.
- Japan's 10-year yield rose two basis points, to -0.024%.
Commodities
- West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.5%, to $51.01 a barrel.
- Gold futures rose 0.5%, to $1,570 an ounce.
