Asian markets are on the rise Monday as more and more nations continue to slowly emerge from the lockdowns imposed to halt the coronavirus pandemic.
Tokyo’s Nikkei index closed 0.4% higher, despite news earlier in the day that Japan had technically fallen into recession for the first time since 2010 after two straight quarters of contraction.
The indexes in Hong Kong, Seoul, Shanghai and Sydney also ended in positive territory, while Taipei dropped 0.6%.
The positive trend has spilled over into Europe, as London’s FTSE is up 2.6%, the CAC-40 in Paris has gained 2.4%, and the DAX index in Frankfurt has soared 2.8%.
Meanwhile, the price of the U.S. crude oil benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, was trading at $31.04 per barrel, up 5.4%, while Brent crude, the international benchmark, was trading at $33.70 per barrel, up 3.6%.
In equities futures trading, the Dow Jones, Nasdaq and S&P 500 are all trading up 1.5% or better, indicating a good start for Wall Street at its opening bell.
