Stocks, US futures rise as bond selloff abates

Bloomberg

Stocks and the US index futures rise on Wednesday and a selloff in sovereign bonds paused, bringing some relief for markets whipsawed in recent weeks by concerns about tightening monetary policy.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index rises more than 1% as technology shares bounced back and a raft of generally positive earnings reports lifted sentiment. Adyen NV jumped more than 11% after the Dutch online-payments company reported second-half revenue growth that met analysts’ estimates. Amundi SA, Europe’s largest asset manager, climbed the most in a year after raking in more client cash than analysts’ expectations. Basic-resources stocks underperformed as iron ore tumbled.
Futures on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 advanced. The 10-year US Treasury yield retreated from levels last seen in 2019, and yields across Europe also falls after France’s central banker said markets may be getting ahead of themselves in pricing rate hikes for this year. A dollar gauge was steady.
An Asia-Pacific share gauge added more than 1% to its highest in about two weeks, helped by Japan and a rally in a Hong Kong technology index.
Meanwhile, the Bank of Japan chose not to deviate from its planned bond purchases, holding fire even as yields continued to rise.
Investors are weighing up still-robust corporate earnings against worries about a rapid withdrawal of pandemic-era stimulus. Data this week is expected to show US inflation continues to overheat, potentially stoking bets on a more aggressive Fed liftoff in March. About 76% of S&P 500 firms that have reported results beat earnings estimates, with profits coming in more than 6% above projected levels.
“We’re still in an environment where a lot is going quite well for the economy,” Lauren Goodwin, a multi-asset portfolio strategist at New York Life Investments, said on Bloomberg Television. “It’s still an all-cyclicals story from our perspective.”
Oil held a drop as traders weighed tensions in Eastern Europe and the resumption of Iran nuclear talks. Aluminum traded near the highest level in more than 13 years. Bitcoin slipped below $44,000.
The Stoxx Europe 600 rises 1.5% as of 9:23 am London time and futures on the S&P 500 also climb 0.7%.
While futures on the Nasdaq 100 rise 0.8%, futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average also climb 0.6%.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rises 1.4% and the MSCI Emerging Markets Index also surges 1.4%.
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed and the euro was little changed at $1.1420.
While the Japanese yen rises 0.1% to 115.42 per dollar and the offshore yuan was little changed at 6.3680 per dollar and the British pound rises 0.2% to $1.3564.