S&P 500 futures, US 10-year Treasury yields portray risk-on

• S&P 500 Futures reverse early-day losses to +0.25%.
• US 10-year Treasury yields rise to 0.78%.
• Japan’s NIKKEI also begins the day on a negative side, -0.20% to 19,309.
• Comments from US diplomats counter the coronavirus data.

Market’s risk-on recently got a push from US President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence as Tokyo open for trading on Thursday. As a result, worrisome coronavirus (COVID-19) figures from the US failed to shake the trading sentiment.

In his routine Coronavirus Task Force Briefings, US President Trump mentioned that we are much closer to getting our country back to where it was. Also supporting the market’s risk-tone were comments from Vice President Pence who said there are at least four clinical trials studying coronavirus treatment Hydroxychloroquine. On Wednesday, the US got the much-needed drug from India for clinical trials that are targeted to find a cure for the pandemic.

Earlier during the day, data from New York and New Jersey pushed the US to register the second-highest virus-led deaths in the world after Italy. Also on the risk-negative side could be France extending its lockdown and comments from the Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan.

Even so, the US 10-year Treasury yields rise to 0.78% whereas S&P 500 Futures flash 0.26% gains to 2,742 by the press time. It should also be noted that Japan’s NIKKEI begins the day’s trading on the back foot around 19,300, alike the US stock futures.

Looking forward, investors will keep eyes on the coronavirus updates whereas the nearby speech from the BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda and US data could offer intermediate direction.