(Bloomberg) — U.S. stock futures dipped early Monday as investors weighed further signs of positive developments in the global fight against the coronavirus. The yen was steady as traders awaited a key Bank of Japan policy meeting.Asian equity futures rose, following a move higher for U.S. stocks on Friday. The Australian dollar erased early modest losses to trade higher, while moves were muted elsewhere across foreign-exchange markets. Coronavirus deaths slowed the most in more than a month in Spain, Italy and France while fatalities reported in the U.K. and New York were the lowest since the end of March. Oil dipped.The Federal Reserve joins the BOJ and the European Central Bank announcing policy decisions this week as the battle against the pandemic continues with some countries proceeding with measures to relax lockdown measures. Several major economies will release GDP numbers, while corporate earnings will keep flooding in, including from Amazon.com Inc., Barclays Plc and Samsung Electronics Co.“This coming week will be huge from a macro data perspective and the extent to which the global economy has been floored by Covid-19,” said Simon Ballard, chief economist at First Abu Dhabi Bank. “Until we are clearly past the peak of the outbreak, on a global scale, and can feasibly deem the pathogen to be contained and there to be no meaningful risk of a second wave of infection, we believe a defensive investment strategy will remain the most appropriate.”Meantime, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo sketched out a phased-in reopening that begins with construction and manufacturing. That could start as soon as May 15, he said, probably upstate before the New York City area. Italy and Spain, Europe’s two hardest-hit countries, along with neighboring France, all signaled tentative moves to open up their economies.These are the main moves in markets:StocksFutures on the S&P 500 fell 0.2% as of 7:11 a.m. in Tokyo. The gauge added 1.4% on Friday.Futures on Japan’s Nikkei 225 advanced 0.2%.Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index futures added 0.6%on Friday, when futures on Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 1.6%.CurrenciesThe yen was little changed at 107.50 per dollar.The offshore yuan traded at 7.0896 per dollar.The euro bought $1.0821, little changed.The Aussie gained 0.4% to 63.94 U.S. cents.BondsThe yield on 10-year Treasuries remained at 0.60% on Friday.CommoditiesWest Texas Intermediate crude slipped 2.4% $16.50 a barrel.Gold was at $1,724.73 an ounce, down 0.3%.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
