Stocks rise as risks recede from Hong Kong to Britain

Bloomberg

US equity-index futures rallied alongside European and Asian stocks as traders cheered a reduction in political tension from Italy and Britain to Hong Kong. Treasuries and gold retreated, while the dollar slipped.
Contracts on the three major American share gauges jumped, signalling stocks will rebound from declines. All industry groups in the Stoxx Europe 600 index advanced, almost erasing the gauge’s August decline.
Luxury-goods makers that depend on Hong Kong sales including Richemont and Swatch climbed along with stocks in Italy, where a new political coalition took shape that may be more conciliatory towards the European Union.
Shares in Hong Kong leaped the most since 2018, buoying equities across Asia, after embattled leader Carrie Lam said she formally withdrew legislation to allow extraditions
to China, the detonator for three months of often-violent protests. In the UK, the pound surged and stocks rose after parliament took a crucial first step to block a no-deal Brexit. The euro advanced and most European bonds fell.
Traders are rushing back into riskier assets as event risks seem to be receding, from a possible Chinese crackdown in Hong Kong to a confrontation between the European Union and two of its biggest members.
At the same time, investors remain on the alert for any news on China-US trade talks, with officials from both countries struggling to agree on the next step after Washington rejected Beijing’s request to delay tariffs that took effect over the weekend.
Elsewhere, oil ticked higher and the onshore yuan rose after a stronger-than forecast daily currency fixing. In the US, with Florida orange groves seemingly escaping major damage from Hurricane Dorian, concern now turns to soy, corn and cotton fields as well as livestock in Georgia and the Carolinas as the storm churns northward.
Bank of England Governor Mark Carney speaks before Treasury Committee on Wednesday alongside colleagues Andy Haldane, Jonathan Haskel and Gertjan Vlieghe, on the bank’s August Inflation Report; he’ll then appear alone to discuss the UK’s economic relationship with the EU.
The US jobs report on Friday is projected to show the widely watched nonfarm payrolls rose by 160,000 in August, versus 164,000 the month prior. Estimates are for unemployment to be steady at 3.7 percent and the average hourly earnings rate of increase to slow to 3.0 percent.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index advanced 0.8 percent in New York. Futures on the S&P 500 Index gained 0.8 percent. The UK’s FTSE 100 Index climbed 0.4 percent. The MSCI All-Country World Index increased 0.4 percent. The MSCI Emerging Market Index jumped 1.4 percent, the highest in more than a month.
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index decreased 0.4 percent. The euro advanced 0.4 percent to $1.1017. The British pound jumped 0.9 percent to $1.2194. The Japanese yen weakened 0.3 percent to 106.23 per dollar.
The yield on 10-year Treasuries gained four basis points to 1.49 percent. The yield on two-year Treasuries increased one basis point to 1.47 percent.
West Texas Intermediate crude increased 1.4 percent to $54.67 a barrel.
Gold dipped 0.7 percent to $1,535.74 an ounce.