Brent crude oil futures rose 0.7 per cent to $74.57 per barrel by 0630 GMT, their highest since November, after Washington said it was ending all sanctions waivers for countries buying Iranian oil.MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.1 per cent, as gains in oil and gas producers offset losses in airlines and other transport sectors facing higher fuel costs.European markets looked set to track Asia’s rise, with London’s FTSE futures up 0.
China’s blue-chip stocks have surged over 30 per cent so far this year on expectations of more stimulus and hope Beijing and Washington will reach an agreement to end their nine-month-long trade dispute. On Wall Street, stocks hovered near break-even on Monday as the benchmark S&P 500 index was about one per cent away from its record high hit in September, while the S&P energy index jumped on higher oil prices.
“The data is pointing to the Fed being as accommodative as possible, which, for Asian investors, is good news,’’ said Jim McCafferty, Hong Kong-based Head of Equity Research, Asia ex-Japan, at Nomura.In the currency market, the dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major currencies, eased 0.2 per cent overnight and last traded steady at 97.384.