By David Randall
NEW YORK, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Stock markets rose and safe
havens such as U.S. Treasury bonds dipped Tuesday as better than
expected factory data and signs that the first coronavirus
vaccinations could be administered by the end of the year helped
prolong a worldwide rally in risk assets despite an acceleration
of the pandemic.
Bets on more easing from the U.S. Federal Reserve to help
the economy through the winter weighed on the dollar as riskier
currencies rose, while crude prices struggled to join the bounce
after oil-producing countries delayed a decision on output cuts.
Pfizer on Tuesday said it had asked for emergency EU
authorization of its vaccine, taking it closer to launch
following a similar move in the United States last month.
Moderna applied for U.S. authorization on Monday
after full results from a late-stage study showed it was 94.1%
effective with no serious safety concerns.
"We believe the rally can continue, with the current
pipeline of expected vaccine rollouts, in line with our central
scenario of widespread availability in the second quarter of
2021," said Mark Haefele, chief investment officer at UBS Global
Wealth Management in Zurich.
MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe
gained 0.98% following broad gains in Europe and Asia, with
Japan's Nikkei closing near a 29-1/2-year high.
China's blue-chip CSI300 index rose 2.2% after a
business survey showed activity in China's factory sector
accelerated at the fastest pace in a decade in November.
In the UK, factories recorded their fastest growth
in almost three years last month, a survey showed Tuesday.
In morning trading on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial
Average rose 308.08 points, or 1.04%, to 29,946.72, the
S&P 500 gained 36.33 points, or 1.00%, to 3,657.96 and
the Nasdaq Composite added 91.54 points, or 0.75%, to
12,290.28.
Breakthroughs in vaccine developments from top drugmakers
Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca in
November along with a market-friendly outcome of the U.S.
presidential election helped the MSCI world stock index score
its best month on record in November, up 12% to new all-time
peaks.
Coronavirus cases have touched multi-month highs in South
Korea, Hong Kong and Europe over the last week, while the United
States posted a record 4.2 million new cases in November.
"What we are seeing today is that upward trend reasserting
itself, given the positive news on the vaccine front, China's
growth picking up, and the tremendous faith in the ability of
central banks to keep the markets afloat," said Stephen Miller,
market strategist for GSFM Funds Management.
In foreign exchange markets, the dollar was under pressure
after closing out on Monday its worst month since July with a
little bounce, and as investors reckon on even more U.S.
monetary easing.
In a speech released late on Monday, Fed chair Jerome Powell
said a slowing recovery and a surging pandemic meant the U.S.
was entering a "challenging" few months, with the potential
deployment of a vaccine still facing hurdles.
Bitcoin was volatile, last down 6% after hitting
a record high earlier in the day.
Benchmark U.S. 10-year notes last fell 12/32 in
price to yield 0.8816%, from 0.842% late on Monday, as the U.S.
Congress began a two-week sprint to secure funding and avoid a
possible shutdown amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Oil prices were volatile after leading producers delayed
talks on 2021 output policy, while the coronavirus pandemic
continued to sap fuel demand.
U.S. crude fell 0.64% to $45.05 per barrel and Brent
was at $47.72, down 0.33% on the day.
(Reporting by David Randall
Editing by Nick Zieminski)
Astrazeneca (AZN)