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(Corrects the erroneous reference to the Japanese markets in paragraph 5, which are closed for a public holiday.)
By Chibuike Oguh
April 29 (Reuters) – Asian stocks made cautious gains in trading early on Wednesday after mixed US corporate earnings. While oil prices appeared to be poised for further swings, as storage concerns limited optimism about declining coronavirus blockades.
Tech stocks yielded the top three US stock indices. USA Red, although they remained within 20% of their historical highs for February.
“There was a huge turnaround in the sector when the money left high-value sectors and growth in technology like Amazon and went to value and cyclical sectors such as energy, industrial and financial,” said Tim Ghriskey, chief investment strategist at Inverness Counsel. In New York.
Alphabet Inc’s earnings beat analyst estimates for quarterly revenue as its Google unit posted double-digit ad growth despite the coronavirus-induced slowdown. As users searched for more, they searched for fewer business topics, and advertisers cut costs.
At the beginning of Asian trade, Australia rose 0.3% and South Korea rose 0.2%. MSCI’s broader Asia-Pacific stock index outside of Japan rose 0.2% to 467.95. Japan’s markets were closed for a public holiday.
Markets were seeking guidance from the US Federal Reserve. The US, which will issue a policy statement at the close of its two-day meeting on Wednesday. The European Central Bank meets on Thursday.
Analysts said the Fed was unlikely to make any more major policy moves, given the scope and depth of its efforts to counter the economic damage caused by the coronavirus.
UBS’s reassuring earnings lifted European banks nearly 5%, while Wall Street digested optimistic figures from industrial conglomerate 3M Co, a maker of N95 respiratory masks, and drug maker Pfizer Inc.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.13%, the S&P 500 lost 0.52%, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 1.4%. The dollar returned some previous losses as shares fell from their highs due to concerns that the coronavirus could spread more than previously thought if companies reopened prematurely.
The index of the dollar against a basket of currencies fell 0.089%. The euro fell 0.11% to $ 1.0816, while the euro index declined after Fitch downgraded Italy’s credit rating to BBB-, just one notch above the “junk” status.
The Japanese yen strengthened 0.35% against the dollar at 106.87 per dollar, while the pound sterling was last trading at $ 1,242, 0.06% less on the day.
The benchmark index of the US Treasury. USA A 10-year price rose 12/32 to yield 0.6161%, from 0.654% late on Monday.
Oil prices ended up blended with Brent in a positive sentiment about the easing of locks, while U.S. crude traders remained cautious as storage capacity was rapidly filling up.
Crude oil prices rose in post-liquidation trade after data showed slightly less than expected inventory accumulation.
US crude recently rose 2.66% to $ 13.12 a barrel, and Brent was at $ 20.74, a 3.75% increase on the day.
Chibuike Oguh’s Reports; Editing by Sam Holmes
