- The NASDAQ 100 technology index closed yesterday at another new record high, and is up by 75% from its March low, outperforming the S&P 500.
- The major U.S. stock index, the S&P 500, yesterday closed practically unchanged as have most major stock indices. The Index is now up by more than 58% from its March low. The U.S. stock market has never fallen and recovered so far, so quickly, as it has in 2020. New all-time highs tend to represent good buying opportunities in stocks. The U.S. stock market has just had its best August in 34 years.
- The U.S. Dollar has been falling again in line with the long-term bearish trend established over recent weeks following last month’s “death cross” in the USD Index.
- The EUR/USD and GBP/USD currency pairs closed yesterday at new multi-month high prices, suggesting higher prices still are likely over the coming days.
- The U.S. Dollar is weak, while the Euro, British Pound, and Australian Dollars are currently the strongest major currencies. Almost all major currencies have been rising against the U.S. Dollar.
- Asian stock markets got a small boost from strong Chinese manufacturing survey data.
- The reserve Bank of Australia has decided to keep Australian interest rates at their current levels.
- Coronavirus global death tolls are showing signs of starting to fall, with deaths in Latin America and the Caribbean at 43% of the global daily total, well exceeding those in both the U.S.A. (17%) and Europe (approx. 6%) which shows that the epicenter of the pandemic is well established in Latin America. Deaths in the U.S.A. have begun to fall, and the number of new cases reported daily has fallen quite strongly.
- Total confirmed new coronavirus cases stand at over 25.4 million with an average case fatality rate of 3.38%. The number of daily new cases has still not exceeded the all-time high made on 31st July. Global mortality over recent weeks is lower than it was during the first peak in April.
- India is now the country seeing most new deaths from the coronavirus, as it also sets a new record for new daily cases. New cases are also rising strongly in the European Union.
- The rate of new coronavirus infections appears to now be increasing most quickly in Argentina, Austria, The Bahamas, Belgium, Belize, Bosnia, Brazil, Burma, Chile, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, France, Greece, Honduras, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Jordan, Lebanon, Lithuania, Mexico, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Switzerland, Tunisia, Turkey, U.A.E., the Ukraine, the U.K., and Venezuela.