Global Markets Rise on Hopes for an End to U.S. Government Shutdown
By Dow Jones Newswires StaffHopes for an end to the U.S. government's shutdown boosted risk sentiment at the start of the week as international stock markets tracked U.S. futures higher.The Senate on Sunday cleared a key hurdle in its drive to end the record-long shutdown after Democrats provided enough votes to advance a measure aimed to end the impasse, albeit some procedural steps remain to be cleared. "It looks like we are getting close to the shutdown ending," President Trump told reporters Sunday evening. "You'll know very soon."Bitcoin rose as investors embraced the return of risk appetite, the dollar was steady and Treasury yields gained across maturities. Gold futures jumped.Tuesday is the U.S. Veterans Day holiday. Treasury markets will be closed but stock markets will open as usual. Earnings this week include Cisco on Wednesday and Applied Materials and Walt Disney on Thursday.Official data due during the week--which could still be delayed--include inflation data for October and jobless claims on Thursday, followed by October retail sales and producer prices on Friday.U.S. stock futures rose Sunday evening trading as the deal came together, and that followed through into early European business hours on Monday. U.S. futures for the S&P 500 were up 0.7%, futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.1% and Nasdaq futures rose 1.2%.Asian shares were higher, tracking U.S. moves, with technology, energy, and financial stocks among the key gainers. South Korea's Kospi closed 3% higher, and Japan's Nikkei closed up 1.3%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng climbed 1.6%. China's benchmark Shanghai Composite climbed 0.5% partly supported by data showing that China's downward price pressures further eased in October.In Europe, the pan-regional Stoxx Europe 600 gained 1% shortly after the open, driven by similar gains in major national indexes. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 added 0.6%, with Diageo gaining over 7% after it appointed Dave Lewis, previously Tesco's chief executive, as its new CEO.The U.S. dollar was steady against a basket of major currencies. The dollar has risen during the absence of negative data that would have indicated a slowdown in the economy, Commerzbank's Michael Pfister said in a note. It will probably take a while for the data to become reliable again after the shutdown ends, meaning the dollar's outlook looks unclear, he said.Bitcoin rose 1.8% to $106,399 after reaching a nearly one-week high of $106,614 overnight, according to LSEG data. "If we do get an end of the shutdown, it would be a near term positive," Jefferies economist Mohit Kumar said in a note. The end of the shutdown would allow for the resumption of official data needed to convince the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates in December, he said.U.S. Treasury yields were recently up. The two-year Treasury yield rose 4 basis points to 3.596%, the 10-year Treasury yield was up 4.4 basis points to 4.136% and the 30-year Treasury yield rose 4 basis points to 4.740%, according to Tradeweb data. The U.S. Treasury will auction $58 billion in three-year notes on Monday, $42 billion in 10-year notes on Wednesday and $25 billion in 30-year bonds on Thursday, marking a test of investor appetite for long-dated bonds.Gold prices jumped, taking their cue from data last week that showed a surge in October layoffs and weakening consumer sentiment. Futures in New York gained 2% to $4,092.20 a troy ounce, the highest level in more than two weeks, while spot gold was up 0.6% to $4,001.28 an ounce. "Signs of a weakening U.S. economy outweighed progress in negotiations to end the record-breaking government shutdown," said Soojin Kim, analyst at MUFG. Silver futures gained 3.7% to $49.92 an ounce, while platinum was up 3.2% to $1,598.80 an ounce.Write to Barcelona Editors at [email protected]