Japan Shines In Asia Market Index, Europe Dips, While Crude Oil Crosses $77 - Global Market Overview While The US Slept

On Monday, February 12th, U.S. stock markets ended mixed; the Nasdaq composite dropped, the Dow gained ahead of inflation data influencing Fed decisions, and the S&P 500 slightly fell, staying over the 5,000-point threshold.

In economic data, the Treasury Department reported a reduction in the U.S. Federal budget deficit to $22 billion for January, down from the $39 billion deficit seen in the same month last year.

Most sectors of the S&P 500 concluded the day in positive territory, with utilities, energy, and materials stocks leading the gains and information technology and real estate stocks ending the day in the red.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.33% and closed at 38,797.38, the S&P 500 declined 0.09% to 5,021.84, while the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.30%, ending the session at 15,942.54.

Asian Markets Today

• On Tuesday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index closed the session higher by 2.97% at 37,963.97, led by gains in the Shipbuilding, Non-Metal Minerals, and Communication sectors.
• Nikkei’s increase has been propelled by overseas investors drawn to the market due to attractive low valuations and improvements in corporate governance, with a declining yen this year offering additional momentum.
• In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.15% and closed at 7,603.60, led by losses in the Healthcare, Telecoms Services and IT sectors.
• India’s Nifty 50 closed higher by 0.59% at 21,743.25, and the Nifty 500 rose 0.55% to 19,782.90. 
• China closed for the Chinese New Year.

Eurozone at 06:15 AM ET

• The European STOXX 600 index was down 0.36%.
• Germany’s DAX dropped 0.47%.
• France’s CAC slid 0.29%.
• U.K’s FTSE 100 traded lower by 0.18%.

Commodities at 06:15 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading higher by 0.68% at $77.44/bbl, and Brent was up 0.74% at $82.61/bbl.
• Natural Gas declined 0.90% to $1.752
• Gold was trading higher by 0.47% at $2,042.35, Silver rose 0.99% to $22.992, while Copper gained 0.55% to $3.7445.

US Futures at 06:015AM ET       

Dow futures were down 0.13%, S&P 500 futures fell 0.37%, and Nasdaq 100 Futures declined 0.66%.

Forex at 06:15 AM ET

The U.S. Dollar Index was down 0.06% to 104.11, USD/JPY gained 0.04% to 149.41, and AUD/USD rose 0.10% to 1.5327.

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash