U.S. equity futures advanced with European stocks as markets tried to stabilize following the worst Wall Street session since 1987. Most Asian benchmarks remained in the red, with investors still worried that emergency fiscal and monetary packages won’t be enough to stave off a global slowdown.

S&P 500 contracts reversed a drop to climb as much as 4.9%, while the Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose as various regulators including those in Italy and Spain banned short-selling on some stocks. Asia’s biggest equity benchmarks pared steep declines, though only those in Sydney and Mumbai gained. South Korea will ban short-selling for six months.

Treasuries retreated and sovereign bonds sank in much of Asia and Europe. Oil pushed higher, and the dollar edged higher, climbing for a fourth day versus a basket of its biggest peers.

Global equities are heading for their worst week since 2008 as investors price in a severely weaker outlook due to the coronavirus pandemic. They are doubting the efficacy of policy responses as cases continue to grow across the world and restrictions on people and businesses crush sentiment. The Bank of Japan on Friday followed an earlier move from the Federal Reserve to inject liquidity and later offered to buy $1.9 billion of bonds in an unscheduled operation.

“Everyone wants to go to cash,” Kieran Calder, head of equity research for Asia at Union Bancaire Privee, told Bloomberg TV.

New York City has declared a state of emergency, France and Portugal said they will close all schools and a leading U.S. infectious disease official said the testing system in that country is failing. Walt Disney Co. is shutting its Disneyland resort in California from Saturday, following previous closures in Asia.

These are the main moves in markets:

Stocks

  • Futures on the S&P 500 Index rose 4.5% as of 8:07 a.m. London time.
  • The Stoxx Europe 600 Index advanced 4%.
  • The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dipped 1.6%.
  • The MSCI All-Country World Index climbed 0.6%.

Currencies

  • The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index edged higher.
  • The euro was little changed at $1.1188.
  • The British pound gained 0.2% to $1.2592.
  • The Japanese yen weakened 1.1% to 105.81 per dollar.
  • The Mexican peso strengthened 1.5% to 21.6122 per dollar.

Bonds

  • The yield on 10-year Treasuries increased nine basis points to 0.89%.
  • The yield on two-year Treasuries climbed two basis points to 0.50%.
  • Germany’s 10-year yield jumped 11 basis points to -0.63%.
  • Japan’s 10-year yield rose 11 basis points to 0.054%.

Commodities

  • West Texas Intermediate crude jumped 4.5% to $32.93 a barrel.
  • Iron ore increased by 1.7% to $88.59 per metric ton.
  • Gold strengthened 0.9% to $1,591.01 an ounce.
  • LME zinc increased 3.5% to $2,006.50 per metric ton.

Source: Investors.com

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