Global stocks rose on Friday, on course for their best month since late 2020, as eurozone growth beat expectations, while the dollar dipped as traders await fresh US data for clues to the outlook for rates, reports Reuters.
As inflation surges across major markets and central bankers fight to raise rates without killing off growth, riskier markets like stocks have tended to react positively to any perceived softening in sentiment on the part of policymakers.
The MSCI World index was last up 0.3 per cent, on course for a near-6 per cent monthly gain, its best since November 2020, buoyed by broad gains across European markets, with the STOXX Europe 600 up 0.9 per cent.
Despite the positive end to the month for stocks, Mark Haefele, Chief Investment Officer at UBS Global Wealth Management, said investors should proceed with caution.
"In the near term, we think the risk-reward for broad equity indexes will be muted. Equities are pricing in a 'soft landing', yet the risk of a deeper 'slump' in economic activity is elevated."
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.3 per cent.
News in the prior session that U.S. gross domestic product had shrunk 0.9 per cent last quarter, to add to a 1.6 per cent contraction in the quarter before that, weighed on the country's bond yields and the greenback, but both staged a partial recovery on Friday.
The yield on benchmark 10-year Treasury notes recovered slightly from its overnight lows to trade at 2.7029 per cent while the two-year note's yield, which typically moves in step with interest-rate expectations, was at 2.8703 per cent.
After earlier flirting with the positive territory, the dollar was last down 0.4 per cent against a basket of its major peers - yet still on course for the second month of gains.
Futures markets now predict that US interest rates will peak by December this year compared to June 2023 and the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates by nearly 50 bps next year to support slowing growth. [0#FF:]
Against the weakening U.S. backdrop, second-quarter GDP data from the eurozone beat expectations, up 0.7 per cent, although growth in the region's biggest economy, Germany, lagged.
In response, Germany's 10-year bond yield - the benchmark for the eurozone - was last up at 0.89 per cent.
Across commodities, Brent crude futures and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude extended early gains and were last up around 2.3 per cent as concerns about supply shortages ahead of the next meeting of OPEC ministers offset doubts around the economic outlook.
Gold gave back some of its early gains to trade up 0.4 per cent to $1,759 an ounce, helped by the weaker dollar.