U.S. Opening Bell: Futures, Global Markets Volatile Ahead Of U.S. Data-Filled Week

 | Jan 10, 2022 07:06

  • Markets eye US CPI and earnings season
  • Treasury yields touch 1.8%
  • Bitcoin under pressure
  • h2 Key Events/h2

    After a mixed Asian session on Monday, US futures on the Dow Jones, S&P 500 NASDAQ and Russell 2000 oscillated between gains and losses amid a European selloff as traders await key US CPI figures on Wednesday as well as the start of earnings season later this week.

    The Treasury selloff resumed.

    h2 Global Financial Affairs/h2

    US futures were mixed and volatile as investors await indications on the state of the country's economy from major players in the financial sector which are due to kick-off the Q4 2021 earnings season on Friday when global lenders JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM), Citigroup (NYSE:C) and Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) report.

    Contracts on the Russell 2000 earlier underperformed, though that has since reversed, with NASDAQ futures now lagging at time of publication. It would appear the market narrative continues to flip-flop between jitters about the ongoing pandemic escalation and anticipation of an opening economy.

    In Europe, the STOXX 600 Index, which initially opened 0.27% higher, fell 0.64% into negative territory and at the time of writing was 0.43% lower. The ups and downs in the regional benchmark revealed the themes motivating traders there. The financial services sector rallied as it is expected to benefit from higher interest rates. Energy firms tracked the oil price and also moved higher. Clearly, there's a case for the cyclical trade as economic-sensitive sectors are outperforming.

    We have also seen that value stocks often outperform, even amid a market narrative of continued restrictions. However, it appears that European traders see no such risk as a lockdown favorite, the technology sector, declined. Perhaps the biggest indicator that European traders' concerns on Omicron are receding is that Travel & Leisure stocks rallied after a report that the ratio of hospitalizations and deaths versus overall cases in South Africa was much smaller for Omicron than for the Delta variant.

    The Asian trading week opened lower, as traders tracked Friday's selloff on Wall Street after the Fed minutes revealed the central bank could begin raising interest rates as soon as March. As we have often pointed out, investors focused on the negative outlook regarding tightening monetary policy while ignoring the Fed's positive message that the US job market is healthy and can endure higher interest rates. That assessment was reinforced by Friday's employment figures which demonstrated better-than-expected wage figures even if job creation was only half of forecasts.

    Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 1.08%, outperforming South Korea's KOSPI which declined 0.95%, lagging among regional peers. Japanese markets were closed for a holiday.

    Get The App
    Join the millions of people who stay on top of global financial markets with Investing.com.
    Download Now

    Treasury yields on the 10-year note extended a climb for a seventh straight day, touching 1.8% at one point. However they slipped back to 1.794% which is the highest since Jan. 20, 2010, erasing the virus-related decline. The current bond selloff is due to the expectation of higher interest rates.