In Asian Equity Markets Japanese stocks rebounded on Wednesday, as investors scooped up beaten-down stocks after less hawkish comments from U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell helped Wall Street regain ground. The Nikkei index rose 1.9 percent to 28,746.08 and the broader Topix gained 1.41 percent to 2,014.82, after three straight sessions of falls. The S&P/ASX 200 index advanced nearly 1 percent to 7,390.1, with gains seen across sectors. At the midday break, the Shanghai Composite index was up 0.35 percent at 3,579.93. China’s blue-chip CSI300 index was up 0.36 percent.

In Currency Markets the dollar slid to its weakest since mid-November against major peers on Wednesday, after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said it may take several months to make a decision on running down the central bank’s $9 trillion balance sheet. Sterling rose to $1.3645 for the first time since Nov. 4. The euro traded near the top of its range of the past two months at $1.13755. A climb above $1.1387 would take it to its highest since mid-November. Against the yen though, the dollar recovered to 115.340, from a one-week low of 115.045 at the start of the week.

In US Equity Markets stock indexes gained ground on Tuesday with Nasdaq leading the advance as investors were relieved that Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s testimony to Congress did not include any major surprises. The Dow rose 0.51 percent, to 36,252.02, the S&P 500 gained 0.92 percent, to 4,713.07 and the Nasdaq Composite added 1.41 percent, to 15,153.45. Eight of the 11 major S&P 500 sectors rose, with growth-heavy sectors like technology, consumer discretionary and communications services contributing most to the S&P’s gains.

In Commodities Markets oil rose nearly 4 percent on Tuesday, supported by tight supply and expectations that rising coronavirus cases and the spread of the Omicron variant will not derail a global demand recovery. Brent crude gained 3.5 percent, to $83.72 a barrel, its highest settlement since early November. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose 3.8 percent, to end at $81.22, also its highest price since mid-November. Spot gold rose 1 percent to $1,819.58 per ounce. Silver rose 1.3 percent to $22.75 an ounce, platinum climbed 3.3 percent to $971.11 and palladium edged up 0.3 percent to $1,917.38.

In European Equity Markets investors venturing back into tech shares along with upbeat expectations for the fourth-quarter earnings season led European stocks to recover on Tuesday, after fears of rising rates drove heavy losses in recent sessions. The pan-European STOXX 600 closed 0.8 percent higher, recovering from its worst day in 1-1/2 months. Technology stocks were the best performers for the day, adding 1.9 percent after falling nearly 8 percent over the past seven sessions. Italy’s second-largest bank, UniCredit, fell 1.1 percent after reports that it was interested in bidding for Russia’s Otkritie Bank.

In Bond Markets U.S. Treasury yields fell on Tuesday, with short-dated yields pulling back from near two-year highs following comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on how the central bank plans to combat inflation. The yield on 10-year Treasury notes was down 3.4 basis points to 1.746 percent. The two-year U.S. Treasury yield, which typically moves in step with interest rate expectations, was down 0.5 basis points at 0.899 percent after climbing to 0.945 percent, the highest since February 2020. The three-year U.S. Treasury yield was down 1.4 basis points at 1.185 percent.