Asian Stocks Set for Muted Start; Dollar Steady: Markets Wrap

(Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks looked set for a muted start to the week as traders awaited a Federal Reserve policy meeting and a flurry of earnings reports against the backdrop of the worsening pandemic. The dollar was steady after Friday’s gains.

Futures were little changed in Japan and Hong Kong and shares saw modest gains in Australia. S&P 500 contracts ticked higher after the benchmark slipped Friday for the first day in four amid concern that a new coronavirus strain may be deadlier than earlier variants. Treasury yields retreated. Oil prices were little changed Monday.

Global stocks have edged back from all-time highs as additional virus lockdowns, the patchy rollout of vaccines and sparring over U.S. fiscal stimulus highlight risks to a nascent economic recovery. Investors are hoping Fed Chair Jerome Powell will provide reassurance after Wednesday’s policy meeting that $120 billion of monthly bond purchases won’t be tapered any time soon.

Vaccine distribution is key to escaping the Covid-19 outbreak but frustration over supplies is growing. In a Facebook post, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte described delays in consignments by Pfizer Inc. and AstraZeneca Plc as “unacceptable.” Meanwhile, the U.K.’s health minister warned that vaccines may be less effective against new variants of the coronavirus.

Elsewhere, China’s Xi Jinping is the opening day headliner at a virtual session of the World Economic Forum. With the global economy reeling, topics will range from fair economic and social systems to digitization and the climate crisis.

These are some key events coming up in the week ahead:

These are the main moves in markets:

Stocks

• S&P 500 futures rose 0.2% as of 8:22 a.m. in Tokyo. The S&P 500 fell 0.3% on Friday.
• Futures on Japan’s Nikkei 225 were little changed.
• Hang Seng futures added 0.2%.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.2%.

Currencies

• The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index climbed 0.4% on Friday.
• The yen was flat at 103.80 per dollar.
• The offshore yuan was little changed at 6.4942 per dollar.
• The euro was flat at $1.2169.
• The British pound was little changed at $1.3689.

Bonds

• The yield on 10-year Treasuries ended last week at 1.09%.

Commodities

• West Texas Intermediate crude added 0.1% to $52.33 a barrel.
• Gold rose 0.1% to $1,858 an ounce.

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