Financial market sentiment among Asian and Pacific Rim traders was elevated on Tuesday as news over a possible Covid-19 (coronavirus) vaccine was appreciated.
Asian traders are also watching the spread of the coronavirus within the United States, which could derail the economic recovery as well as ongoing talks within the European Union leadership regarding a fiscal stimulus package. A deal could come soon but gaps remain between the more established northern states and the Mediterranean area states in the Eurozone.
Today’s early gains seen in the Asian and Pacific Rim follow a strong showing on Wall Street as technology shares had a good day overnight.
In Japan, the benchmark Nikkei 225 by mid-morning was up 0.63 percent. In Tokyo shares on the broader Topix index added 0.17 percent.
Across the Korean Strait, the benchmark South Korean Kospi composite index was up 0.93 percent and in Australia, the headline ASX 200 added 0.7 percent.
Asian Traders watch Covid-19 Vaccine News Closely
There is some potential for a coronavirus vaccine. Pfizer and BioNTech say that early data is positive on a joint Covid-19 vaccine project. Another source of good news comes from Oxford University and AstraZeneca whose data shows positive immune response in early trials.
The global Covid-19 pandemic, which spread from China in early 2020, has infected 14.6 million people around the world and killed over 608,000 people. There have been alarming surges in new cases in the United States which is dampening financial market sentiment.
Gaps Remain within the Eurozone over a Fiscal Package
European leadership continued to haggle over an economic recovery package for the Eurozone on Monday. However they remain deadlocked over the recovery fund to help Eurozone member states battle the economic damage from the Covid-19 lockdown.
They are discussing 390 billion euros of grants and 360 billion euros of loans. If a compromise is met and they pass the package, this would be historic agreement as the single currency and trade bloc further integrate.