US stocks fell sharply yesterday after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said interest rates may hike earlier than scheduled to prevent an overheating of the economy. But later on, when market reaction became more evident, Yellen took back her statements and said she did not mean to make any projection, adding that she does not believe inflation would be a problem in the future.
Nevertheless, all US indices slipped more than 2%, but thankfully managed to win back some numbers by the end of the day. Nasdaq closed 1.9% lower than the previous day, while S&P 500 closed with minus 0.7%
Japan indices also fell, dipping by more than 0.8%.
But oil, by contrast, rose very sharply and gained as much as 2.5%.
In fact, Brent continued growing today, adding 0.8% in its price and trading at $ 69.40. It is expected to cost around $ 68.50 - $ 71.00 for the rest of the day.
WTI also rose by 0.8%, hitting a price of $ 66.20. It is projected to trade around $ 65.50 - $ 67.00 today.
With regards to the world's epidemiological situation, the situation has worsened in Europe and Brazil as both recorded increased incidents of Covid. Turkey, France and Germany recorded 29,000, 24,000 and 12,000 new cases, respectively, while India listed a huge 385,000.
Conclusion: Markets are currently waiting for the ADP employment report, which will be released today at 12:30 GMT. If the figure is much lower than expected, the US market will dip very strongly.