On 26 January, 2016 – Global stocks swing on oil prices

Falling oil prices sent Asia lower early in the global market day. But a rebound in oil prices boosted shares in Europe and the US. 
United States
Shares closed sharply higher as the price of crude oil made another sudden turn, this time to the upside. The price of oil surged, reversing a slump from the day before. The Dow Jones industrials were up 1.8 percent, the S&P gained 1.4 percent and the Nasdaq added 1.1 percent.
Chevron and Exxon Mobil each jumped thanks to the gain in oil prices. Consumer stocks gained after Procter & Gamble and Coach reported earnings that were better than expected. 3M advanced. The maker of Post-it notes, industrial coatings and ceramics reported a greater profit and more revenue than expected. 3M also backed its annual profit forecast. Huntington Bancshares agreed to buy a competitor, the FirstMerit Corporation, for $3.4 billion. The deal would create the largest bank in Ohio and the companies would have about $100 billion in combined assets. FirstMerit shares rose and Huntington shares dropped.
Zions Bancorp stock was up after the bank reported strong fourth quarter results on Monday. Goldman Sachs gained. Sprint gained after it reported a smaller than expected quarterly loss. Lockheed Martin was down after it said it would acquire the engineering company Leidos, combine it with its information systems and global solutions unit, and then separate that company so it could focus on its remaining aerospace and defense business. Corning was up after the company reported a greater profit and more revenue than expected. Johnson & Johnson posted a larger fourth quarter profit after it sold its Cordis heart device business.
These data reflect observations at 4:00 PM US ET. Gold at the afternoon London fixing was up US$7.00 to US$1,113.60. Copper futures were up 2.0 percent to US$2.04. WTI spot crude was up 90 US cents to US$36.75. Dated Brent spot crude was up US$1.08 to US$31.58. The US dollar was up against the yen and Swiss franc. It was unchanged against the euro. However, it declined against the pound and the Canadian and Australian dollars. The Dollar Index was down 0.3 percent. The yield on US Treasury 30 year bond was unchanged at 2.79 percent while the yield on the 10 year note slipped 1 basis point to 2.00 percent.
Europe
Although European markets got off to a weak start, they ended in positive territory. The reversal in crude oil prices was largely responsible for the recovery. OPEC members are starting to cooperate on a plan to curb production, according to reports from a key energy conference in the Middle East. The FTSE was up 0.6 percent, the CAC gained 1.1 percent, the DAX advanced 0.9 percent and the SMI added 0.7 percent. The European recovery was also helped along by the positive performance in US markets. Investors are looking forward to the conclusion of the Federal Reserve policy meeting Wednesday.
Deutsche Bank finished higher after Moody’s upgraded the lender’s long-term deposit rating to A2 from A3 and downgraded its long-term debt rating to Baa1 from A3. Commerzbank also advanced. Deutsche Börse retreated. The financial services industry should see the low-interest rate environment as a chance to invest, the chief executive of exchange operator said. Munich Re edged higher after raising its stake in Apollo Munich Health Insurance. Siemens rallied after the industrial group raised its earnings outlook for 2016 after reporting a 42 percent increase in first-quarter net income. RWE and E.ON advanced as did Technip and Total. Peugeot and Renault climbed along with Michelin.
In London, easyJet was down after the airline reported a 3.7 percent decline in revenue per seat in the three months to December following the terrorist attacks in Paris and Egypt. Royal Bank of Scotland was up on a broker upgrade. Mining stocks including Anglo American, Glencore, Fresnillo, Rio Tinto, Antofagasta, BHP Billiton and Randgold Resources turned in positive performances as precious metal prices climbed. Philips climbed in Amsterdam after the Dutch consumer electronics giant reported strong sales and order intake in its fourth quarter.
Asia Pacific
Asian retreated as oil prices failed to extend last week’s rebound and caution set in before the Federal Reserve FOMC and Bank of Japan meet on Wednesday and Friday respectively. Markets in India and Australia were closed for holidays. Declining Chinese shares heightened risk aversion. Chinese and Hong Kong shares tumbled following two days of advances despite an injection of liquidity into the mainland market by the People’s Bank of China.
Chinese shares succumbed to another late afternoon selloff on concerns about the slowing economy, rising capital outflows, further weakness in the yuan and spikes in onshore short-term borrowing costs ahead of next month’s Lunar New Year holiday. The Shanghai Composite plummeted 6.4 percent and the Hang Seng lost 1.1 percent.
The Nikkei retreated 2.5 percent after two days of gains. Investors fretted about possible easing by the Bank of Japan at this week’s meeting. Exporters Honda Motor, Toyota, Panasonic and Sony dropped as the risk-off mood lifted demand for safe-haven assets, including the Japanese yen. Hitachi, Denso and Mitsubishi Electric were down after reports that auto parts makers are under scrutiny by European regulators for suspected price fixing. Softbank was down on reports its subsidiary Sprint has axed at least 2,500 jobs across six customer care centers and its Kansas headquarters. McDonald’s Japan declined on rumours that its U.S. parent firm is seeking to sell a portion of its stake in the Japan business. Energy explorer Inpex and Japan Petroleum also dropped.
The Kospi lost 1.4 percent after preliminary data showed South Korea’s economic growth more than halved to 0.6 percent in the fourth quarter from 1.3 percent in the third quarter.
Global Stock Markets

Please remember, the value of investments and the income from them can do down as well as up. Funds that invest in overseas markets may be subject to currency fluctuations. Investments in small and emerging markets can be more volatile than other overseas markets. Reference in this document to specific securities should not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell these securities, but is included for the purposes of illustration only.
Looking forward*
Australia posts fourth quarter consumer price index.  In the US, December new home sales will be posted. The Federal Reserve will announce the results of its FOMC meeting.
*Note — all releases are listed in local time.