European shares rose to record highs on Tuesday, soothed by reassurance from Federal Reserve officials that monetary stimulus won t be clawed back anytime soon. Sentiment in Europe was also underpinned by the latest IFO indicator which showed that the upswing for the German economy, Europe s largest, is picking up pace after the knock from COVID-19. A multi billion-euro takeover deal combining two of Germany s biggest property developers was a focus. Vonovia slipped 4% on news it was taking over rival developer Deutsche Wohnen, whose shares surged over 15%, for about 18 billion euros. The STOXX index of leading European shares gained 0.3% to 446.57 points after hitting a new record high of 447.01.
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LONDON (Reuters) - New York was set to test record highs on Tuesday, underpinned by reassurances from Federal Reserve officials that monetary stimulus will remain in place during the pandemic.
FILE PHOTO: The New York Stock Exchange is pictured amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., April 16, 2021. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri
The soothing words on inflation kept the dollar at four-and-a-half-month lows and triggered attempts to rein in the yuan.
U.S. stock futures, the S&P 500 e-minis, were up 0.3%, pointing to a steady open on Wall Street. The S&P 500 index closed at 4,197.05 points on Monday, near its lifetime high of 4,238.04 of May 7.
Gold Holds Steady Near Multi-month Highs
WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Gold prices held steady near multi-month highs on Tuesday, with a weaker dollar offering some support.
Spot gold edged up 0.2 percent to $1,884.09 per ounce, while U.S. gold futures were little changed at $1,884.55.
The dollar index eased and Treasury yields were stable following a retreat overnight after comments from a series of Fed officials helped ease fears about inflation.
James Bullard, president of the St. Louis Federal Reserve, told Yahoo Finance in an exclusive interview that policymakers should not be too eager to pull back support yet as vaccinations bring the economy closer and closer to pre-pandemic form.
Dollar Extends Slide Against Peers
WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. dollar exhibited weakness against most of its major counterparts on Tuesday amid rising speculation the Fed will continue with its easy monetary policy.
Recent speeches from some Fed officials confirmed that the central bank is unlikely to tighten its policy anytime soon.
James Bullard, president of the St. Louis Federal Reserve, told Yahoo Finance in an exclusive interview that policymakers should not be too eager to pull back support yet as vaccinations bring the economy closer and closer to pre-pandemic form.
Other Fed officials Raphael Bostic and Lael Brainard also talked down inflation risks and described the recent demand-supply disruptions as transitory.