GLOBAL MARKETS-U.S. stocks gain, Treasury yield curve steepens following earnings, Biden assurances

(Updates to U.S. market open, changes dateline; previous
LONDON)
By Stephen Culp
NEW YORK, Nov 13 (Reuters) - Wall Street advanced and the
U.S. Treasury yield curve steepened on Friday as upbeat earnings
and assurances from President-elect Joe Biden's COVID advisory
team helped investors look past the threat of new economic
lockdowns to combat record spikes in coronavirus infections.
Encouraging results from Cisco Systems Inc CSCO.O and Walt
Disney Co DIS.N helped send Wall Street's three major stock
indexes higher. Economically sensitive cyclicals and small caps, stocks that
were the stars of the rally at the beginning of the week, once
again led the charge. On Monday, investor risk appetite was
boosted by Pfizer Inc's PFE.N announcement that the COVID-19
vaccine being developed with German partner BioNTech SE BNTX.O
appeared to be 90% effective.
The S&P 500 and the blue-chip Dow were on track to post
their second straight weekly gains, while at current levels the
tech-heavy Nasdaq is lower than last Friday's close.
"It's been a tug of war between the eventual distribution of
a vaccine which now looks fairly certain for 6 to 9 months from
now, and the near-term prospects of a massive infection rate not
only in the U.S. but globally," said Tim Ghriskey, chief
investment strategist at Inverness Counsel in New York.
"Investors are trying to grapple with whether to look long-
term to where the virus has been eradicated or reflect the
near-term economic fallout from shutdowns," Ghriskey added.
President-elect Joe Biden solidified his election victory as
Arizona's 11 electoral college votes were added to his column,
but the official transition remains in limbo as President Donald
Trump persists with his refusal to concede. Still, Biden's pandemic advisory board provided a glimpse
into the next president's coronavirus plan, and said there was
no plan to enact a nation-wide shutdown. The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 234.07 points,
or 0.8%, to 29,314.24, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 25.88 points,
or 0.73%, to 3,562.89 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added
55.43 points, or 0.47%, to 11,765.02.
European stocks turned positive after surging COVID
infections threatened to halt the week's sharp rally.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index .STOXX rose 0.19% and
MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe .MIWD00000PUS gained
0.46%.
Emerging market stocks rose 0.48%. MSCI's broadest index of
Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS closed 0.46%
higher, while Japan's Nikkei .N225 lost 0.53%.
U.S. Treasury yields were mixed as investors consolidated
positions ahead of the weekend and remained cautious overall
given the surge in coronavirus cases. But the yield curve
steepened on Friday, after flattening the previous session.
Benchmark 10-year notes US10YT=RR last fell 2/32 in price
to yield 0.893%, from 0.886% late on Thursday.
The 30-year bond US30YT=RR last rose 4/32 in price to
yield 1.6462%, from 1.652% late on Thursday.
Crude oil prices slipped as rising COVID infections
threatened hopes of a demand rebound. Still, oil remains on
track to post its second straight weekly gain. U.S. crude CLcv1 fell 1.8% to $40.38 per barrel and Brent
LCOcv1 was last at $42.87 per barrel, down 1.52% on the day.
The dollar was down, but the safe-haven yen and Swiss franc
strengthened, reflecting a loss of risk appetite driven by
vaccine hopes. The dollar index .DXY fell 0.17%, with the euro EUR= up
0.17% to $1.1824.
The Japanese yen strengthened 0.47% versus the greenback at
104.65 per dollar, while Sterling GBP= was last trading at
$1.3168, up 0.41% on the day.
Gold prices rose as rising global coronavirus infections
sparked renewed fears over the pandemic's economic toll.
Spot gold XAU= added 0.9% to $1,892.81 an ounce.

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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 Wolrd Index Market Cap http://tmsnrt.rs/2EmTD6j
Yields on longer-dated Treasury debt https://tmsnrt.rs/3koq9py
S&P 500 sectors gain amid vaccine hopes https://tmsnrt.rs/3eGGlBa
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