Weekly Market Update: 12th of April 2021

12th of April 2021

Domestic Markets | S&P/ASX200 up 167pts (2.4%)

CBA up $0.92 (1.1%)
FMG up $0.64 (3.2%)

The ASX200 had another shortened week due to Easter Monday, but still enjoyed a strong week, despite the COVID vaccine timetable slowing down substantially due to concerns with the AstraZeneca vaccine in people under 50. Still, the week briefly saw the index rise above the 7,000 mark, the first time since February last year.

Global Markets | Dow Jones up 647pts (2.0%)

S&P 500 up 109pts (2.7%)
Nasdaq down 420pts (3.1%)

The three US majors all enjoyed strong weeks, with a retracement in US 10 Year Treasuries helping to see the Nasdaq enjoy a better week than its peers – though it was the Dow and S&P 500 which finished the week at record highs. Stronger than expected US Non-Farm employment figures during the previous week were also reflected once the US market opened on Monday, while the market was also boosted by continued dovishness from the Feds when the minutes from last month’s FOMC meeting was released.

Europe | Euro Stoxx 50 up 33pts (0.8%)
After breaking above a key resistance level the week before, the Euro Stoxx continued to rise higher during the week, finishing the week at another intra-week high at 3,978.8 points. European-specific data saw German industrial orders rise for a second consecutive month, as the market shrugged off new restrictions on the AstraZeneca vaccine in younger people.

Asia | HSI, CSI, KOSPI, NIKKEI
The Asian majors experienced a poor week, with only the Korean KOSPI rising, up 0.6%. A cultural festival kept the Chinese and Hong Kong festival closed on Monday, with the Hang Seng closed for an additional day for Easter. Overall, the decline in three of the indices is put down to a period of consolidation, after rapid rises in recent months.

Commodities | Gold rose 15.16USD/oz (0.9%)

Silver rose 0.29USD/oz (1.2%)
Copper rose 0.03USD/lbs (0.7%)
Iron Ore rose 4.00USD/t (2.4%)

Precious Metals | Gold, Silver
Gold price reached 5-day highs on Thursday but couldn’t maintain those gains; nevertheless, both gold and silver enjoyed weekly gains, aided by a depreciation in the US dollar and a decline in Treasury yields. The continued dovishness from central banks and new fiscal stimulus news in the US remain as strong catalysts for precious metals in the near term.

Oil | WTI Crude, Brent
Oil markets had a poor week, with Brent and WTI crude oil falling 2.5% and 3.1% respectively. OPEC+’s decision to increase supply now looks like a misstep as demand continues to remain weak as COVID rises continue to impact European travel, while oil was also negatively impacted by news that US sanctions on oil production will be decreased, which further adds supply to the market.

Iron Ore
Iron ore prices continued to enjoy a brief renaissance, with iron ore prices finishing above $170 for the first time since March 12^th. This increase in prices came as a result of seasonal weather impacting Brazil’s iron ore production. After Chinese manufacturing activity unexpectedly saw its weakest growth month in 8 months in February, data showed that Chinese manufacturing experienced renewed growth in February.

Copper
Copper markets experienced an indifferent week overall, initially reacting strongly to news that the Chilean government had imposed new restrictions to combat COVID in the country, before dropping the rest of the week as investors realised that restrictions shouldn’t have a major impact on the countries copper supply.