In Asian Equity Markets stocks lost ground on Friday, as the spread of the Delta variant of the coronavirus across the region heightened worries about its economic recovery. Uncertainty about Chinese policy has also left investors in Asia nervous, though this week regional indices clawed back some of last week’s losses caused by Beijing’s crackdowns on the technology and education sectors. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 0.25 percent on Friday, dragged down by Chinese blue chips, which fell 0.87 percent and Korea down 0.35 percent. Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.26 percent.

In Currency Markets the dollar crept higher on Friday in the lead up to the release of U.S. employment data, as traders expect strong numbers that could make the case for faster U.S. policy tightening at a time when action in Europe or Japan seems long distant. The euro drifted down to a one-week low of $1.1818 in Asia. The dollar also touched a one-week high of 109.88 Japanese yen, adding to a solid bounce from a low of 108.72 that it hit on Wednesday. The U.S. dollar index rose 0.1 percent in Friday’s Asia session to 92.374 and is 0.3 percent higher for the week so far.

In US Equity Markets the Nasdaq and S&P 500 closed at record levels on Thursday after a spate of strong corporate earnings and a further decline in U.S. unemployment claims last week, as investors weighed concerns of the surge of the Delta variant ahead of Friday’s job’s report. The Dow rose 0.78 percent, to 35,064.25, the S&P 500 gained 0.60 percent, to 4,429.1 and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.78 percent, to 14,895.12. Nine of the 11 major S&P 500 sector indexes rose, with healthcare stocks in the red as Cigna Corp fell 10.9 percent after predicting a bigger hit to full-year earnings from the pandemic.

In Commodities Markets oil prices rose more than 1 percent on Thursday on increasing Middle East tensions, but gains were capped as fresh restrictions to counter a rise in COVID-19 cases threatened the global energy demand recovery. Brent crude oil futures rose 1.3 percent, to settle at $71.29 a barrel. U.S. WTI crude futures rose 1.4 percent, to settle at $69.09 a barrel. Spot gold fell 0.4 percent to $1,804.46 per ounce. Elsewhere, platinum fell 1.5 percent to $1,010.08 an ounce while palladium rose 0.2 percent to $2,650.61. Silver lost 0.6 percent to $25.21 per ounce.

In European Equity Markets stocks ended at record highs on Thursday, as strong results from Novo Nordisk and Siemens helped outweigh weak mining stocks and losses in major German retailers whose earnings were hurt by COVID-related disruptions. The pan-European STOXX 600 ended 0.4 percent higher at a record high of 469.96 points, its fourth consecutive peak this week. Danish company Novo Nordisk rose 5.2 percent after it raised its full-year outlook and posted above-forecast quarterly earnings, while German industrial firm Siemens climbed 2.6 percent as it lifted its profit forecast.

In Bond Markets U.S. Treasury yields rose on Thursday as risk sentiment improved after a healthy jobless claims report, a day ahead of more detailed employment data. The benchmark 10-year yield was up 3.8 basis points at 1.2219 percent. The two-year U.S. Treasury yield, which typically moves in step with interest rate expectations, was up 2 basis points at 0.202 percent. The yield on 10-year Treasury Inflation Protected Securities was -1.102 percent after setting a record low of -1.216 percent on Wednesday. The 10-year TIPS break-even inflation rate was at 2.327 percent, lower than on Tuesday.