WASHINGTON, Oct 2 — US stock futures dipped today after President Donald Trump said he and his wife will quarantine after a close aide tested positive for the coronavirus.
Futures for the S&P 500 fell 0.39 per cent in Asian trading after the news, extending earlier losses, while Treasury yields remained broadly unchanged.
The US dollar held steady against most currencies, but it rose against the Australian and New Zealand dollars in a sign of risk aversion.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.15 per cent. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index fell 0.68 per cent as a decline in oil and copper prices weighed on the resources sector.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index was up 0.15 per cent after the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) resumed normal trading after its worst-ever outage brought the world's third-largest equity market to a standstill.
Trump said on Twitter that he and his wife had been tested for coronavirus after Hope Hicks, a senior advisor who recently traveled with the president, tested positive.
If Trump also tested positive, that could cause a new wave of market volatility as investors brace for a hotly-contested presidential election in November.
“It depends on how serious this becomes, and whether or not Trump is actually infected,” said Masayuki Kichikawa, chief macro strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui Asset Management.
“The most important thing is we were already worried about an uncertain outcome from the election, and this adds to the uncertainty.”
In addition, a spate of data, including jobless claims and consumer spending, suggested that the plodding US economic recovery could be losing steam.
Futures for the tech-heavy Nasdaq also fell 0.4 per cent in Asian trading. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield was little changed at 0.6709 per cent.
There was a brief jump in trading volumes for both S&P and Nasdaq futures, but activity has subsided as investors await more details, according to a currency trader based in Singapore.
China's stock and bond markets, foreign exchange and commodity futures markets are closed October 1-8 for the Golden Week holiday. South Korea and Hong Kong markets are also closed today for holidays.
US markets kicked off the fourth quarter by closing higher yesterday while investors tracked progress in negotiations for additional fiscal stimulus.
US consumer spending is starting to slow due to a shaky jobs market. If policymakers cannot agree on more support, the US economy could lose more momentum.
Traders are also waiting for the Labour Department's report on non-farm payrolls and the jobless rate later today, following new layoff announcements from the likes of Disney and Goldman Sachs.
Thee dollar index was quoted at 93.811, close to a one-week low due to doubts about US stimulus talks.
Spot gold fell 0.55 per cent to US$1,894.59 (RM7,872.15) an ounce, adding to its worst month since November 2016, while oil prices continued to fall, adding to a 10 per cent September drop.
Brent crude futures were trading down 1.22 per cent at US$40.43 a barrel in Asia today, while US crude futures were down 1.32 per cent at US$38.21 a barrel.
Oil prices fell more than 3 per cent yesterday as rising coronavirus cases around the world dampened the demand outlook, while a rise last month in member output from the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries also pressured prices. — Reuters
Source: Malay Mail
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