GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian investors anticipate modest rise in markets after mixed day on Wall Street

By Jessica DiNapoli
NEW YORK, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Investors in Asia were expecting
small gains on Thursday, after Wall Street booked a choppy day
due in part to a disappointing private jobs report indicating
slowing economic activity.
“Markets are quite likely to muddle through from here,” said
Michael Frazis, portfolio manager at Frazis Capital Partners in
Sydney. “The vaccine is increasingly priced in. A couple of
months ago, no one knew how deep coronavirus would be, or what
the outcome of the election was. Now both sources of uncertainty
have been removed, and it's pretty supportive of markets.”
MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe .MIWD00000PUS
gained 0.09%. Nikkei futures were up about .07% and Hong Kong's
Hang Seng index futures .HSI HSIc1 rose 0.23%.
In early trade, Australia's S&P ASX 200 .AXJO climbed
0.46%.
U.S. private payrolls added fewer jobs than expected in
November as growing new COVID-19 infections led to additional
business restrictions. The bleak jobs report added to signs that
the economy was decelerating as a tumultuous year nears a close.

Investors' hopes, however, were bolstered by advancements by
COVID-19 vaccine candidates and the U.S. Congress passing a
potential coronavirus stimulus package.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 0.2%, while the
S&P 500 .SPX gained 0.18%. The Nasdaq Composite .IXIC
dropped 0.05%.
The dollar fell to a two-and-a-half year low on the news of
the stimulus, but ended the day little changed as Congress
grappled with extending additional coronavirus aid. Treasury yields on the long end of the curve rose, adding to
the increases on Tuesday in response to movement on the
coronavirus stimulus package. Oil prices rose also after Britain approved a COVID-19
vaccine and investors hoped producing countries would keep
limits on their output. <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Global assets http://tmsnrt.rs/2jvdmXl
Global currencies vs. dollar http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh
Emerging markets http://tmsnrt.rs/2ihRugV
MSCI All Country Wolrd Index Market Cap http://tmsnrt.rs/2EmTD6j
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>