In European Equity Markets wind turbine makers and oil major Royal Dutch Shell propelled stocks higher on Tuesday, boosting sentiment on the energy sector ahead of Thursday’s OPEC meeting, while dispelled political risks in Ireland also supported the market. The STOXX 600 rose 0.6 percent, led by retailer Ocado’s percent advance after a tie-up with France’s Casino  though gains by heavyweight energy stocks had the biggest market impact. Shell rose 3.4 percent after it canceled an austerity dividend policy and boosted cash-generation forecasts. Spanish and Danish wind turbine makers Siemens Gamesa and Vestas Wind rose 10.2 percent and 8.7 percent respectively, with traders citing India’s plan to award 100 gigawatts of solar and wind contracts by March 2020.

In Currency Markets the dollar rose against a basket of currencies on Tuesday, rebounding from a two-month low hit the previous day, as risk sentiment improved and the confirmation hearing of new Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell kicked off. The dollar index was up 0.33 percent at 93.208. Against the yen the dollar was 0.2 percent higher. The British pound fell from a two-month high on Tuesday, having failed to push above $1.34 as Brexit-related doubts began to re-exert their grip on the currency. Sterling was down 0.64 at $1.3231. The Canadian dollar weakened to a one-week low against its U.S. counterpart as oil prices fell. The euro fell 0.26 percent to $1.1867.

In Commodities Markets  oil prices eased on Tuesday, weighed down by uncertainty over the outcome of an OPEC meeting this week at which an extension to its price-supporting oil output cuts will be discussed.  Brent crude oil fell 0.7 percent, to $63.40 a barrel. U.S. crude was 0.5 percent, lower at $57.79, after falling 1.4 percent in the previous session. The OPEC is heading for tougher-than-expected policy talks on Thursday as its leader Saudi Arabia pushes to extend output cuts by nine months while non-member Russia is hesitating on the curbs’ duration due to worries that the market could overheat. Spot gold stood at $1,294.73 an ounce, little changed from $1,294.44 late on Monday. Silver was flat at $17.03 an ounce.

In US Equity Markets the main indexes hovered near record levels on Tuesday as investors digested comments from Federal Reserve chair nominee Jerome Powell and shrugged off concerns over progress of the U.S. tax bill. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.35 percent, at 23,664.04, the S&P 500 was up 0.33 percent, at 2,609.95 and the Nasdaq Composite was up 0.14 percent, at 6,888.49. Real estate was the only laggard among the 11 major S&P sectors, falling 0.6 percent. The S&P financial index rose 0.7 percent, leading the gainers. JPMorgan was up 1.4 percent and Bank of America rose 1.3 percent. Emerson Electric’s shares were up 2.42 percent after the company withdrew its offer for Rockwell Automation.

In Bond Markets the U.S. Treasury yield curve steepened on Tuesday after hitting its flattest in a decade, in what analysts viewed as a much-needed reprieve from months of flattening, as investors awaited progress on U.S. tax reform. In mid-morning trading, the 10-year Treasury yield was down at 2.318 percent, from 2.328 percent late on Monday. U.S. two-year yields, which climbed to a nine-year peak last week, fell to 1.742 percent, from 1.745 percent on Monday. U.S. 30-year bond yields edged lower to 2.763 percent, from Monday’s 2.765 percent.