GLOBAL MARKETS-Asia stocks set to rise as Wall Street jumps on lockdown easing hopes

By Chibuike Oguh
NEW YORK, April 28 (Reuters) - Asian stocks were set for
gains on Tuesday after a strong Wall Street session as easing
lockdown restrictions by some countries and U.S. states buoyed
sentiment, despite another decline in oil prices.
While some investors believe the worst may soon be over for
the world economy, Commonwealth Bank of Australia said there
were still plenty of reasons to be cautious.
"We are less optimistic and expect a slower recovery in the
world economy," the bank said.
"The risk of reintroducing restrictions is a risk to market
participants' optimistic outlook for a quick resumption of
normal economic activity."
The Nikkei 225 futures NKc1 were up 3.05% from the cash
contract's close on Monday.​ The Nikkei 225 index .N225 closed
down 0.86% at 19,262​​​ in the previous session.
Australian S&P/ASX 200 futures YAPcm1 were up 0.09% and
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index futures .HSI .HSIc1 were up
0.54%.
All three major U.S. stock averages advanced, and are all
now within 20% of their record closing highs reached in
February. The benchmark S&P 500 is on track for its best month
since 1987, after trillions of stimulus dollars helped U.S.
equities claw back much of the ground lost since the coronavirus
crisis brought the economy to a grinding halt.
But some analysts believe gains may be limited unless there
is progress in finding treatments for the disease. The U.S. dollar slipped as risk-prone traders cheered
lockdown news even as health experts warned that not enough
coronavirus testing was in place in the United States.
From Italy to New Zealand, governments announced the easing
of restrictions, while Britain said it was too early to relax
them there. New York state will not reopen for weeks, at the
soonest. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose
1.51%, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 1.47% and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC added 1.11%.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index .STOXX rose 1.77% and
MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe .MIWD00000PUS gained
1.76%.
Oil prices weakened sharply on continued concerns about
oversupply and a lack of storage space. The front-month contract
was trading at lower-than-usual volumes on Monday as traders
moved to later months in futures contracts.
U.S. crude CLc1 fell 23.55% to $12.95 per barrel and Brent
LCOc1 was at $20.07, down 6.39% on the day.
The U.S. dollar dropped as the broader upbeat mood
encouraged investors to move into other currencies.
The dollar index =USD fell 0.17%, with the euro EUR= up
0.05% to $1.0825.
The Japanese yen strengthened 0.26% versus the greenback at
107.30 per dollar, while sterling GBP= was last trading at
$1.2421, up 0.44% on the day.
Bucking the trend, the Brazilian real BRL= was on track to
close at a record low against the greenback.

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