Weekly news summary for January 8 to January 14
Friday, Jan. 8, 2021: Risk Assets’ Broad Global Rally Continues
Risk assets’ global rally continued on Friday, with the European and Asian stock market following the US in the green, copper hitting a fresh eight-year high, and Bitcoin breaching the $40,000 mark for the first time.
The 10-year US Treasury note was up 1.10% to hit a fresh high since March after Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker stated that the Federal Reserve might be considering reducing its bond purchases at the end of 2021.
Monday, Jan. 11, 2021: US Dollar Rises as Investors Cut Bets on Congress
The US dollar gained over the weekend as investors cut their bets on a free-spending Congress supporting the economy with large coronavirus relief packages this year.
The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of major currencies, climbed 0.4% to $90.46, a full point increase from the three-year low booked in the previous week.
Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2021: Oil Prices Post New 11-month Highs
Oil prices hit their highest in 11 months on Tuesday, finding support in quicker vaccine release in the US, recovery in India’s air travel, and easing concerns over lockdowns in China.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures edged higher by 1.4% to $53.01 per barrel, while global benchmark crude oil futures added 1.5% to $56.51 per barrel.
Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2021: Trump Poised to be Impeach for the Second Time
Outgoing US President Donald Trump is facing the possibility of being impeached for the second time, having only a week left in his term.
The likelihood of Trump being convicted also seemed to be increasing in the Senate as more and more Republican Senators turned their back on Trump after he defended his incitement of last week’s riots on the Capitol.
Thursday, Jan. 14, 2021: Nikkei Hits Record High on Stimulus Expectations
Asian stocks traded near record peaks, and Japanese equities surged to a three-decade high on Thursday, as investors keep a close watch on a potential $2 trillion US stimulus package and continued bets on global economic rebound.
The Nikkei 225 index improved 0.8% after rising 1.4% to reach its highest since August 1990, while the MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.04%, having climbed 5% last week to record highs.
