Asian and European stock markets saw strong gains on December 3, following a rally in US tech stocks that pushed Wall Street to new record highs. Japan’s Nikkei index rose by 1.91%, while the MSCI Asia index, excluding Japan, climbed by 1.16%. Australia’s benchmark also reached an all-time high, increasing by 0.56%. In early European trading, the Stoxx 600 index rose by 0.62%, and France’s CAC 40 gained 0.94%, rebounding after a slow start earlier in the week.
The rally was primarily driven by significant gains in US tech stocks, such as Meta Platforms, which surged nearly 19%, and Tesla, which jumped 12%. Investors remain optimistic about the resilience of large companies with strong financials. US stocks have risen approximately 7% over the past three months, while European equities have seen a 2.5% decline during the same period. Despite the strong tech performance, markets are still cautious about certain underperforming sectors, like cryptocurrencies.
The dollar eased following a sharp increase the previous day. After strengthening on Monday due to positive US economic data and concerns about potential tariff threats from President-elect Trump, the dollar index slipped 0.15%. The euro and pound both saw slight recoveries, with the euro rising 0.24% to $1.0524 and the pound climbing 0.27% to $1.2692. However, comments from Federal Reserve official Christopher Waller, suggesting a potential rate cut in December, put some pressure on the greenback.
