STATE OF THE MARKETS

Strong earnings boosted stocks up. US stocks received another upside boost after Bank of America reported that 66% of the companies reporting earnings so far have beaten their estimates. Dow (+0.56%), S&P (+0.74%), Nasdaq (+0.71%) and Russell (+0.36%), all sectors in the green with utilities, IT and healthcare leading the gains. Dollar (DXY) was sold off to as low as the 93.50 mark before bidders emerged to close it above 93.80, but the index remains under pressure at writing as risk appetite returns. The 10Y yields benchmark soared to 165 basis points, the highest in five months.

In the commodities market, crude continues its upward trajectory as China reported colder weather that may result in increased demand. The black gold settled near $83/bl as New York closed. Gold remains supported as more than $39m worth of block orders flocked the futures market. Iron ore was little changed, trading in the $123/tn the figure amid staggered production in China.

In the FX space, Yen was seen synching across all horizons, while Kiwi, Aussie, Sterling, Swiss and Dollar were synching across short and medium term accounts. Investors are apparently repositioning themselves as risk appetite in the new quarter is gaining momentum. Sentiments were highly bullish in the short and medium term as the safe haven trios were sent to offers. Markets look for earning reports from Tesla (TSLA), Verizon (VZ), Anthem (ANTM) and Las Vegas Sands (LVS) on Wednesday to gauge Covid impact in the third quarter. EIA crude inventories will be in the spotlight for oil traders.