Stocks fell but remained close to recent record highs, with investors also digesting the prospect of rising taxes to pay for Biden’s plan. — Reuters pic
But vaccination campaigns have progressed more slowly than expected and the prospect of stricter lockdowns in France and Germany, as well as a resurgence of Covid-19 cases in China, weighed on market sentiment. “Spending is easy to do but the question is how are you going to pay for it? Markets often ignore politics but they don’t often ignore taxes,” said Tim Ghriskey, chief investment strategist at Inverness Counsel in New York.
Emerging market stocks lost 0.93 per cent. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan closed 0.67 per cent lower, while Nikkei futures lost 2.01 per cent.“This morning’s disappointing retail sales figures reinforced the idea that more stimulus will be needed,” said Ian Lyngen, head of US rates strategy at BMO Capital Markets in New York.
Oil prices fell sharply on concerns that demand would be lower as Covid-19 continues to rage globally.