SINGAPORE – Asian stocks eked out gains on Thursday, but the week’s rally lost steam as investors seemed torn between relief at the agreement of a huge US stimulus package and dread over a likely spike in jobless claims and coronavirus cases.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 1.3 percent but regional performances were patchy.
The Nikkei snapped three days of gains with a 3.5 percent drop, while Australia’s benchmark rose for a third day – its longest winning streak in six weeks.
Currency markets also hinted at the sense of uneasiness – the risk-exposed Australian dollar sank, the safe haven yen rose, but so too did many emerging market currencies.
Oil fell and US and European stock futures turned red after bobbling into positive territory during the session. E-mini futures for the S&P 500 last traded down 1 percent and EuroSTOXX 50 futures were down 1.4 percent.
“After this crazy three weeks of trading we are now coming to a more static state,” said Margaret Yang, market analyst at brokerage CMC Markets in Singapore. “Bulls and bears are fighting each other, with equal strength.”
Global markets have lost about a quarter of their value in the last six weeks of virus-driven selling.
The passage of the stimulus bill through the Senate, as expected, brushed Asian indexes slightly higher but gains were marginal and ephemeral. The Hang Seng and Shanghai Composite soon returned to negative territory.
The package will now head to the House of Representatives, which could vote sometime this week. Before that will come a glimpse of the scale of economic destruction already wrought.
RBC Capital Markets economists had expected a national figure over 1 million, but say “it is now poised to be many multiples of that,” as lockdowns drive deep layoffs.
“Something in the 5-10 million range for initial jobless claims is quite likely,” they wrote in a note. That compares to a 695,000 peak in 1982.
Citi Private Bank said the peak total could reach 15-18 percent of the total US workforce, some 25 million people.
In currencies, the mood drove weakness in both the US dollar and the riskier Aussie.
The Australian dollar was last down 0.6 percent at $0.5924 and 1 percent weaker on the rising yen.
The safe-haven yen rose 0.4 percent to 110.70 per dollar and the softer greenback buoyed emerging market currencies, with MSCI’s emerging markets currencies index touching a one-week high.
Oil edged lower with fears of plunging demand just outweighing stimulus hopes. US crude futures slipped 30 cents to$24.19 per barrel and Brent crude futures fell 0.5 percent to $27.26.
Gold fell 0.7 percent to $1,602.00 per ounce.
