Australia

Australian shares are set to open lower as the global vaccine rally ran out of energy amid a renewed focus on the surge in new cases in the US, as well as heightening concerns about overwhelmed hospitals.

The Australian SPI 200 futures contract was down 39 points or 0.6 per cent to 6,391 near 6.50am Sydney time on Friday, suggesting a negative start to trading.

Wall Street ended sharply lower on Thursday as US coronavirus infections surged and investors weighed the timeline for the mass rollout of an effective vaccine.

Unofficially, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 358.48 points, or 1.22 per cent, to 29,039.15, the S&P 500 lost 38.94 points, or 1.09 per cent, to 3,533.72 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 84.98 points, or 0.72 per cent, to 11,701.45.

Locally, investors have had just their second November session of losses on the Australian market after momentum created by hope for a coronavirus vaccine eased.

The S&P/ASX200 benchmark index closed lower by 31.5 points, or 0.49 per cent, to 6,418.2 on Thursday.

The indices were little changed after the first two hours of trade, following mixed results on Wall Street.

However two bursts of selling without any obvious news ensured the market finished lower.
Investors sold stocks in sectors hardest hit by the pandemic, such as energy. They had this week gobbled up those stocks after Pfizer said its vaccine in development was 90 per cent effective.

Energy, financials and materials lost about one per cent or more.

Investors reverted to buying the technology and telecommunications stocks they have favoured during the pandemic.

Gold was up 0.9 per cent at $US1,881.78 an ounce; Brent oil was up 1.3 per cent per cent to $US44.35 a barrel; Iron ore was down 0.7 per cent at $US123.74 a tonne.

Meanwhile, the Australian dollar fell 0.6 per cent to US72.36¢ overnight, amid concerns that lockdowns in parts of the US will further weigh on global growth.

Asia

Shanghai shares ended lower on Thursday after data showed that the country's new bank loans last month fell more than expected to their lowest in a year on tightened loan quotas.
The blue-chip CSI300 index rose 0.1 per cent to 4,908.46, while the Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.1 per cent to 3,338.

The tech-heavy start-up board ChiNext rose 0.7 per cent, while the STAR50 index climbed 1.3 per cent.

Hong Kong stocks ended lower on Thursday, after data showed that new bank loans in China last month fell more than expected to their lowest in a year on tightened loan quotas.

At the close of trade, the Hang Seng index was down 67.34 points or 0.26 per cent at 26,122.52. The Hang Seng China Enterprises index rose 0.31 per cent to 10,569.52.

Around the region, MSCI’s Asia ex-Japan stock index was firmer by 0.23 per cent, while Japan’s Nikkei index closed up 0.68 per cent.

Europe

European shares retreated from eight-month highs on Thursday as surging coronavirus infections raised doubts about a quicker economic rebound and overshadowed several upbeat quarterly earnings reports.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index was down 0.8 per cent, reversing after having gained 12.5 per cent so far this month.

The banking index led sectoral declines following its best three-day winning streak since the global financial crisis in 2009, while travel stocks fell 0.6 per cent after surging earlier in the week on hopes for an effective COVID-19 vaccine.

Financial stocks were the single biggest drag on the STOXX 600.

France on Wednesday overtook Russia as the worst affected country in Europe, while Italy surpassed the 1-million-infections mark to become one of the top 10 worst-affected countries globally.

Data on Thursday showed Britain’s economy grew by a slower-than-expected 1.1 per cent in September from August even before the latest restrictions on businesses. London’s FTSE 100 fell 0.7 per cent after posting eight straight days of gains.

North America

Wall Street ended sharply lower on Thursday as US coronavirus infections surged and investors weighed the timeline for the mass rollout of an effective vaccine.

New York became the latest state to introduce stricter social distancing rules on Wednesday, as new infections in the country surged above 100,000 for an eighth consecutive day.

The blue-chip Dow was pulled down by industrial and financial companies sensitive to economic growth, with Boeing Co and Goldman Sachs each down more than 2 per cent.

Airlines and cruise operators, among the hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic, also fell.
Even after Thursday's drop, the S&P 500 has gained almost 2 per cent this week, buoyed by positive vaccine trial data that increased expectations of a quick economic recovery. Stocks have also benefited from expectations that a divided Congress will keep President-elect Joe Biden from enacting tax hikes that would hurt corporate profits.

New data showed US jobless claims fell to a seven-month low last week, but the pace of job recovery slowed as fiscal stimulus waned and further improvement could be limited by a raging pandemic.

Unofficially, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 358.48 points, or 1.22 per cent, to 29,039.15, the S&P 500 lost 38.94 points, or 1.09 per cent, to 3,533.72 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 84.98 points, or 0.72 per cent, to 11,701.45.