TOKYO (Reuters) -Global stock prices rose to a 1 1/2-month high on Monday after data showing a surge in U.S. employment while U.S. bonds came under pressure on worries the Federal Reserve may bump up interest rates sooner than it has indicated.
U.S. S&P500 futures traded 0.5% higher, maintaining their gains made during a truncated session on Friday though tech-heavy Nasdaq futures lagged behind, trading almost flat.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.8% while MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was almost flat, with China closed for Tomb-Sweeping day and Australia on Easter Monday.
MSCI’s all-country world index was almost flat but stood near its highest level since late February and within sight of a record high set that month.
The U.S. labour department said on Friday that nonfarm payrolls surged by 916,000 jobs last month, the biggest gain since last August.
That was well above economists’ median forecast of 647,000 and was closer to markets’ whisper number of one million. Data for February was also revised higher to show 468,000 jobs created instead of the previously reported 379,000.
U.S. S&P500 futures traded 0.5% higher, maintaining their gains made during a truncated session on Friday though tech-heavy Nasdaq futures lagged behind, trading almost flat.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.8% while MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was almost flat, with China closed for Tomb-Sweeping day and Australia on Easter Monday.
MSCI’s all-country world index was almost flat but stood near its highest level since late February and within sight of a record high set that month.
The U.S. labour department said on Friday that nonfarm payrolls surged by 916,000 jobs last month, the biggest gain since last August.
That was well above economists’ median forecast of 647,000 and was closer to markets’ whisper number of one million. Data for February was also revised higher to show 468,000 jobs created instead of the previously reported 379,000.
“It will become impossible for the Fed to avoid discussing tapering by the autumn,” said Kozo Koide, chief economist at Asset Management One, noting U.S. President Joe Biden’s infrastructure spending plan is likely to be passed by then.
The two-year U.S. Treasury yield rose to 0.186%, near its eight-month peak of 0.194% touched in late February.
Yields on longer-dated bonds also rose, with 10-year notes at 1.725% in Asia on Monday, extending its rise that began on Friday after the job report.
The strong jobs data helped to underpin the dollar.
The greenback traded at 110.57 yen, not far from Wednesday’s one-year peak of 110.97. The euro stood at $1.1767.
Gold slipped 0.4% to $1,724.70.
In crypto assets, ether slipped 1.7% to $2,040.21 from Friday’s record peak of $2,144.99. Bitcoin eased 0.9% to $57,704.
Oil prices dipped after OPEC+ agreed last week to gradually ease some of its production cuts between May and July.
U.S. crude futures fell 0.6% to $61.09 per barrel.
Source Reuters