Equity markets in North America and Europe are bouncing back this morning. US Index futures are up 0.8%-1.0% clawing back all of yesterday’s 0.3% loss for the Dow and building on yesterday’s 0.4% gain for the NASDAQ. Over in Europe, the Dax is up nearly 1.0% while the FTSE is flat. Cryptocurrencies are climbing for a second straight day, particularly Bitcoin which is up 5.5% and back above $25,000.
Some of the regional bank stocks which were hammered yesterday are rallying this morning on what appears to be a combination of improving confidence, short covering and bargain hunting. First Republic, for example, which plunged 61.8% yesterday, is up 57.8% in premarket action today. It remains to be seen, however, if this bounce can be sustained through the full trading day.
The US 10-year treasury note yield has firmed back up above 3.60%, while Gold has levelled off just above $1,900/oz suggesting that some of the financial fear which gripped markets yesterday may be fading a bit. The US Consumer Price Index for February was up 6.0% in February, in line with expectations and down from 6.4% last month.
Although some of the recent panic selling seems to be subsiding, commodity action suggests concerns about the health of the world economy and the outlook for resource demand remains elevated. WTI Crude Oil is down 1.5% this morning, while Copper is down 0.9%.
