Asia And Europe Markets Mixed; Dollar Steady Ahead of Key Data - Global Markets Today While US Slept

On Thursday, February 6, U.S. markets closed mixed, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq gaining while the Dow slipped amid a volatile session. Investors assessed corporate earnings and awaited key economic reports. Amazon rose 1.1% before its earnings, beating revenue estimates but missing cloud sales, only to fall in the after hours. Eli Lilly, Tapestry, and Philip Morris surged on strong forecasts, while Honeywell fell on restructuring plans.

In economic data, U.S. initial jobless claims rose by 11,000 to 219,000 in the last week of January, exceeding the expected 213,000. Unit labor costs increased by 3.0% in Q4 after a 0.5% rise in Q3, while nonfarm business sector productivity grew 1.2%, down from a revised 2.3% in the prior quarter.

The S&P 500 saw gains across most sectors, driven by consumer staples, technology, and financial stocks, while energy and healthcare lagged, closing lower.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.28% and closed at 44,747.63, the S&P 500 closed higher by 0.36% at 6,083.57, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.51% to finish at 19,791.99.

Aisa Markets Today

• On Friday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed lower by 0.60% at 38,819.00, led by losses in the Communication, Automobiles & Parts and Machinery sectors.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 declined 0.11% to 8,511.40, led by losses in the Energy, Gold and Healthcare sectors.
• India’s Nifty 50 closed lower by 0.18% at 23,561.25, and the Nifty 500 slid 0.14%, closing at 21,641.15. The losses were led by losses in the Oil and gas, Fast-Moving Consumer Goods, and Healthcare sectors.
• China’s Shanghai Composite rose 1.01% and closed at 3,303.67, while Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 rose 1.30% at 3,892.70.
• Hong Kong’s Hang Seng closed the session higher by 1.16% at 21,133.54.

Eurozone at 05:30 AM ET

• The European STOXX 50 was down 0.23%.
• Germany’s DAX rose 0.04%.
• France’s CAC declined 0.16%.
• U.K.’s FTSE index 100 traded lower by 0.24%

Commodities at 05:30 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading higher by 0.79% at $71.17/bbl, and Brent was up 0.81% at $74.90/bbl.
• Oil prices rose after new U.S. sanctions on Iran but remained on track for a third consecutive weekly decline due to trade war concerns.
• Natural Gas declined 0.73% to $3.383.
• Gold was trading higher by 0.51% at $2,891.51, Silver was up 0.28% to $32.722, and Copper rose 1.30% to $4.5198.

U.S. Futures at 05:30 AM ET

Dow futures were up 0.06%, S&P 500 futures declined 0.01% and Nasdaq 100 futures slid 0.04%.

Forex at 05:30 AM ET

• The U.S. Dollar Index gained 0.04% to 107.74, USD/JPY was up 0.49% to 152.09, and USD/AUD fell 0.09% to 1.5899.
• The U.S. dollar held steady ahead of payroll data, while the yen hit a nine-week high on BoJ rate hike bets. Markets eye U.S. job figures and Fed policy, while geopolitical tensions and trade developments add uncertainty.

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