SYDNEY (Feb 13): US and European stock futures rallied on Thursday on optimism over prospects of a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia, offsetting a jump in Treasury yields as hot inflation threatens to close the door to any policy easing in the US this year.
Global trade war fears persisted as US President Donald Trump said he would impose reciprocal tariffs as soon as Wednesday evening on every country that charges duties on US imports. Gold prices hovered not far from their record highs.
The Japanese yen was the biggest loser in the face of higher US yields, while the euro has been helped by Trump’s phone calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskiy, raising hopes that the years-long war could be nearing an end.
Oil prices dropped, having been down more than 2% overnight. Wall Street staged a late rally to end the day mixed.
In Asia, EUROSTOXX 50 futures climbed 1%. Nasdaq futures rose 0.4%…
