Asia Market Mostly Higher Along With Europe, Crude Oil and Gold - Global Markets Today While US Was Sleeping

On January 23rd, U.S. stock markets closed mixed, with the Dow Jones in red while the S&P 500 index achieved a third consecutive record high.

Investors are keenly focused on the forthcoming reports from the ‘Magnificent 7’ megacaps, pivotal in shaping the trajectory of Wall Street’s continuing rally.

The majority of S&P 500 sectors ended positively, led by consumer staples and communication services, while real estate and consumer discretionary stocks closed lower, defying the broader market trend.

In economic data, the U.S. Fifth District’s composite manufacturing index fell to -15 in January from December’s -11 reading.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.25%, closing at 37,905.45, the S&P 500 rose 0.29% to 4,864.60, while the Nasdaq Composite was up 0.43%, ending the session at 15,425.94.

Asian Markets Today

• On Wednesday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index closed the session lower by 0.81% at 36,226.48, led by losses in the Paper & Pulp, Fishery, and Chemical, Petroleum & Plastic sectors.
• Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.06% and closed at 7,519.20, led by gains in the Gold, Metals & Mining, and Materials sectors.
• India’s Nifty 50 closed higher by 1.01% at 21,453.95, and Nifty 500 rose 1.27% to 19,451.00. 
• China’s Shanghai Composite increased 1.80% to 2,820.77, while the Shenzhen CSI 300 gained 1.40%, closing at 3,277.11.
• People’s Bank of China Reserve Requirement Ratio cut by 50bps to 10%.
• Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed 3.56%, concluding the day at 15,899.87.
• A surge in Alibaba BABA shares drove the Hang Seng spike, which leaped up to 6.57% following reports that founder Jack Ma purchased $50 million worth of the company’s shares traded in Hong Kong.

Eurozone at 06:00 AM ET

• The European STOXX 600 index was up 0.96%.
• Germany’s DAX gained 1.18%.
• France’s CAC climbed 0.82%.
• European stocks were lifted by tech sector gains after robust earnings from SAP SE SAP and ASML Holding ASML.
• The U.K.’s FTSE 100 traded higher by 0.41%.

Commodities at 06:00 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading higher by 0.12% at $74.46/bbl, and Brent was up 0.01% at $79.56/bbl.
• Natural Gas gained 2.63% to $2.223.
• Gold was trading up by 0.34% at $2,032.85, Silver rose by 1.75% to $22.858, while Copper climbed 2.26% to $3.8798.

US Futures at 06:00 AM ET       

Dow futures were up 0.20%, S&P 500 futures increased 0.43%, while Nasdaq 100 Futures rose 0.69%.

Forex at 06:00 AM ET

The U.S. Dollar Index declined 0.51% to 103.90, USD/JPY fell 0.56% to 147.53, and AUD/USD slid 0.23% to 1.5163.

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash