In Asian Equity Markets stocks fought back from early losses on Monday as sharp falls in gold and oil prices briefly spooked sentiment, while the dollar reached four-month highs on the euro after an upbeat U.S. jobs report lifted bond yields. Holidays in Tokyo and Singapore made for thin trading conditions, adding to the volatility. Yet after an initial fall, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan recovered to be up 0.1 percent. They were helped by China’s blue chips index which added 1.3 percent. Japan’s Nikkei was shut but futures were trading a modest 20 points below Friday’s close.

In Currency Markets the dollar climbed against major peers on Monday, reaching a four-month high versus the euro, as traders positioned for an earlier tapering of Federal Reserve stimulus. The dollar index, which tracks the U.S. currency against six rivals, rose to a two-week top 92.915. The dollar also hit an almost two-week high of 110.37 yen. The dollar rallied against its Australian and New Zealand counterparts on Monday, jumping 0.3 percent to as high as $0.7330 per Aussie and up 0.4 percent to $0.6980 per kiwi.

In US Equity Markets the Dow and the S&P 500 indexes closed at record highs on Friday following a stronger-than-expected jobs report, while investors shrugged off concerns over the Delta variant impacting a nascent economic recovery. The Dow on Friday rose 0.41 percent, to 35,208.51, the S&P 500 gained 0.17 percent, to 4,436.52 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.4 percent, to 14,835.76. On the earnings front, American International Group Inc rose 4.7 percent after it beat second-quarter profit estimates on Thursday. Corteva Inc rose 8.0 percent after raising its net sales forecast for the year.

In Commodities Markets oil prices declined further on Friday, set for their biggest weekly loss since October after falls earlier in the week triggered by rising COVID-19 cases and a surprise build in U.S. crude stockpiles. U.S. crude fell 1.46 percent to $68.08 per barrel and Brent was at $70.49, down 1.12 percent on the day. Spot gold fell 2.2 percent to $1,763.96 per ounce. Silver lost 3.2 percent to $24.33 an ounce, while platinum fell 2.2 percent to $983.53 and was set for its worst week since June. Palladium, fell 0.8 percent to $2,628.72.

In European Equity Markets stocks inched up to a record close on Friday, marking their best week since mid-March on a run of strong quarterly earnings and as hopes of a broader rebound drove buying in economy-linked sectors. The pan-regional STOXX 600 index notched a fifth straight record high to gain 1.8 percent for the week, ending it at 469.97 points. Bank stocks were the best performers this week, adding 4.4 percent as positive earnings reports from majors including HSBC and Societe Generale boosted the index.

In Bond Markets U.S. Treasury yields rose Friday after a strong jobs report that was in line with goals the Federal Reserve has set to start unwinding stimulus. The yield on the benchmark 10-year note was up 8.7 basis points at 1.3036 percent, its highest of the day, as equity indexes closed at record highs. The two-year U.S. Treasury yield, which typically moves in step with interest rate expectations, was up almost a basis point at 0.2103 percent. The 10-year TIPS break-even inflation rate was at 2.366 percent, slightly higher than Thursday.