- Gold closed at another 8-year high price yesterday above $1800, and looks likely to rise higher still this week. Silver closed at a 10-month high price.
- Stock markets have mostly traded higher over the past day, with the Japanese Nikkei 225 Index up this session by 0.65%. The technology sector is performing very strongly, with the NASDAQ 100 Index closing at a new high boosted by Amazon breaking above $3000.
- Forex markets have seen risky currencies gain at the expense of safe havens, with the Euro strong, while the Japanese Yen is currently the weakest currency. The U.S. Dollar is in a confirmed long-term downwards trend after making a technical “death cross” this week.
- Yesterday saw the second-highest number yet of daily total new coronavirus confirmed cases globally at 213,279. The disease is still spreading exponentially.
- Some countries that initially appeared to successfully suppress the coronavirus, such as Australia and Israel, are re-imposing closure restrictions, while a partial lockdown has also been implemented in Spain.
- Coronavirus deaths in Latin America and the Caribbean are 50% of the global daily total, well exceeding those in both the U.S.A. (10%) and Europe (approx. 8%) which shows that the epicenter of the pandemic is well established in Latin America.
- Total confirmed new coronavirus cases stand at over 12 million with an average case fatality rate of 4.56%.
- The number of new coronavirus cases is rising strongly in India, which has now overtaken Russia to stand at third place globally with over 767,00 total confirmed cases.
- Brazil continues to see more daily deaths from coronavirus than any other country in the world. The Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has tested positive for the virus, but says he feels OK.
- Belgrade, Serbia has seen violent clashes between police and protestors against a second coronavirus lockdown.
- The rate of new coronavirus infections appears to be now increasing most quickly in the United States, Algeria, Cameroon, Costa Rica, India, Israel, Japan, Kosovo, Montenegro, Morocco, Pakistan, Panama, the Philippines, Serbia, South Africa, the U.A.E., Uzbekistan, and Venezuela.