Global market trades hit €1.7tn with vaccine news boost

Traders stampeded to the riskier plays in equities, foreign exchange and bond markets after Pfizer released positive data on its vaccine trial. File Picture: PA

News of a breakthrough in the race to find a Covid-19 vaccine sparked one of the heaviest trading days since the height of the pandemic crisis, according to early data analysed by Reuters, with nearly $2 trillion (€1.7tn) changing hands in one day. 

Traders stampeded to the riskier plays in equities, foreign exchange and bond markets after Pfizer released positive data on its vaccine trial, while rotating out of safe havens such as technology stocks, Japanese yen, and top-rated bonds.

In the US, nearly $500bn worth of trades went through stock markets on Monday, one of the busiest days since March, when coronavirus lockdown fears rattled financial markets. 

Europe saw $120bn traded, according to Refinitiv data.

Value stocks, typically companies that are more sensitive to economic cycles, notched their best one-day performance against their growth-focused peers ever in the US after Monday’s news of an effective vaccine against the coronavirus.

A similar trend was noticed in the bond and currency markets where volumes matched the panic trading seen during the depths of the market mayhem in March and double that of April when the coronavirus pandemic slammed into markets.

Bond market turnover also jumped. Total turnover on German government bonds on Monday totalled nearly €9bn, more than the average since the start of October. 

- Reuters