Opening Bell: Tech Stocks Lead Muted Global Rally; Bitcoin On Cusp Of New High

 | Oct 19, 2021 07:44AM ET

  • Technology sector rebounds 
  • Bitcoin heading towards all time high
  • Gold climbs
  • h2 Key Events/h2

    Contracts on the Dow, S&P, NASDAQ and Russell 2000 as well as global equities were all trading higher on Tuesday ahead of the Wall Street open, after Monday's tech rally saw the NASDAQ jump 0.84%. The move came amid optimism on corporate earnings which offset lingering pessimism over heightened inflation.

    Treasuries fluctuated and the dollar declined.

    Global Financial Affairs/h2

    Europe's STOXX 600 Index found its footing after yesterday's selloff, driven by a rally in the European technology sector which took its cue from yesterday's gains during the New York session. However, telecom equipment manufacturer Ericsson (ST:ERICb) dropped about 3%, though it has since recovered some of those losses, after the Swedish telecom infrastructure giant reported chip supply constraints which overshadowed an earnings beat.

    As well, Swedish telecom operator Tele2 (ST:TEL2b) lost almost 5% of  value, presumably on profit-taking after quarterly earnings met expectations. 

    Earlier, the same tech industry recovery helped Asian traders look past pessimism over China's slowing economy. Stocks in the region rebounded from yesterday's declines. Hong Kong's Hang Seng jumped 1.5%, outperforming Asian peers. On the other side of the performance spectrum, Australia's ASX 200 slipped into the red, as the metal & mining, resource and materials sector—which the country's economy is heavily dependent on—fell.

    Rising bond yields have pressured Australian shares as investors feared the Reserve Bank would begin removing accommodation. However, rates dropped as investors shored up government bonds after the central bank said it remained committed to supporting monetary conditions to bolster the economy. 

    US Treasury yields on the 10-year note, which have been volatile recently due to patchy economic data, pared a decline while the dollar traded lower.