Greenback actions, financial knowledge, oil costs

Vehicles are displayed in a window while electronic boards display inventory information on the Australian Stock Exchange operated by ASX.

Lisa Maree | Bloomberg | Getty Images

SINGAPORE – Asia Pacific markets rose Monday, with the Japanese Nikkei 225 posting the highest gains.

The Japanese benchmark index rose 0.8% in early trading while the Topix rose 0.67%. In South Korea, the Kospi index rose 0.13%.

The Australian ASX 200 was up 0.17% with most sectors up. But big miners came under pressure as Rio Tinto’s shares fell 0.2%, Fortescue fell 0.67%, while BHP traded near flat.

The session follows last week when the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 in the US posted their fourth and second consecutive negative weeks of losses. The US stock index futures have changed little.

Last week, data showed a strong comeback in the services sector in both the US and Europe as businesses reopened after an extended lockdown and benefited from a global recovery in demand.

“The debate in the financial markets is no longer so much about how quickly GDP can recover, but rather about the shape of the recovery,” wrote analysts at ANZ Research in a morning note. They said it will take time to answer questions about inflation, but they expect the US Federal Reserve to steer the market appropriately.

“We see little prospect of Fed spokespersons changing recent forecasts that price increases are temporary but that the Fed will respond appropriately if not,” the analysts wrote.

Currencies and oil

In the forex market, the US dollar was trading at 89.989 against a basket of its peers, sliding 90.080 from an earlier level.

Among the major currency pairs, the Japanese yen changed hands at 108.91 and weakened from near 108.60. The Australian dollar was trading at $ 0.7733 and was relatively flat from the previous close.

Oil prices rose during Asian trading hours on Monday. US crude rose 0.46% to $ 63.87 a barrel, while the global benchmark Brent rose 0.41% to $ 66.71.