TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian shares extended their rally on Wednesday in the wake of Wall Street’s big gains as U.S. Congress appeared closer to passing a $2 trillion stimulus package to curb the coronavirus pandemic’s economic toll.
The government will conduct checks at estates and facilities run by oil palm and rubber companies to ensure they comply with federal orders to curb the spread of Covid-19 as operations continue.
Barclays slashed its oil price estimates for this year for the second time in two weeks, expecting WTI Crude to average $28 a barrel in 2020 due to the demand shock from the coronavirus and the supply shock from the Saudi-Russian oil price war.
The prognosis for the oil patch just got worse. The price of a barrel of crude oil could more than halve from current levels if the coronavirus pandemic isn’t brought under control. Plus global oil storage facilities could quickly get overwhelmed, analysts say.
The country’s rubber products sector has asked for the moratorium already extended to several other sectors to be extended to it as well, to overcome the challenges faced by the COVID-19 crisis.
Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) futures rose on Tuesday, snapping three sessions of losing streak, on bargain-hunting and a sharp recovery in Tokyo stock market, though gains were capped by continued fears over the coronavirus.