GLOBAL MARKETS-Equities, oil rally in anticipation of more US stimulus spending

By David Randall
NEW YORK, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Global equity benchmarks jumped
and safe havens such as the dollar and U.S. Treasury bonds
dipped Tuesday as investors expected Janet Yellen to use her
Treasury Secretary confirmation speech to bolster the case for
heavy fiscal stimulus.
The move would aim to mend the economic damage inflicted by
the coronavirus pandemic on the world's largest economy.
Risk assets such as oil and emerging market stocks also
rallied.
Yellen will tell the Senate Finance Committee that the
government must "act big" with its next coronavirus relief
package, according to her prepared statement seen by Reuters.
"A strong (stimulus) package would psychologically lift the
mood of the investor and a good many consumers are going to go
out and spend," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at
Spartan Capital Securities in New York.
MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe .MIWD00000PUS
gained 0.88% following broad gains in Asia and Europe.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
.MIAPJ0000PUS rose 1.5% to a record high. Data on Monday confirmed that the world's second largest
economy was one of the few to grow during 2020 and actually
gathered pace as the year drew to a close. In morning trading on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial
Average .DJI rose 203.83 points, or 0.66%, to 31,018.09, the
S&P 500 .SPX gained 25.52 points, or 0.68%, to 3,793.77 and
the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added 126.87 points, or 0.98%, to
13,125.37.
Despite the risk-on mood on Tuesday, some dealers were wary
before President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration on Wednesday,
fearing more far-right mob violence.
Wall Street is also bracing for tougher regulations now that
the Democrats control the Senate, with Biden set to nominate two
consumer champions to top financial agencies. In foreign exchange markets, the U.S. dollar slipped from
close to its highest in nearly a month as caution set in before
Yellen's speech, where she is expected to reaffirm commitment to
a market-determined exchange rate.
The dollar index =USD fell 0.321%, with the euro EUR= up
0.47% to $1.2133. The euro EUR=D3 rose 0.5% to $1.212 after
touching a six-week low of $1.2052 in the previous session.
Benchmark 10-year notes US10YT=RR last fell 5/32 in price
to yield 1.1125%, from 1.097% late on Friday
Spot gold XAU= added 0.1% to $1,839.21 an ounce.
Optimism that government stimulus will buoy global economic
growth and oil demand lifted crude oil prices. U.S. crude CLc1
rose 0.8% to $52.78 per barrel and Brent LCOc1 was at $55.76,
up 1.84% on the day.

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Global assets http://tmsnrt.rs/2jvdmXl
Global currencies vs. dollar http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh
Emerging markets http://tmsnrt.rs/2ihRugV
MSCI All Country World Index Market Cap http://tmsnrt.rs/2EmTD6j
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