In Asian Equity Markets stocks were struggling to sustain even a minor rally on Monday after shockingly weak data from China underlined the deep damage lockdowns were doing to the world’s second-largest economy. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan were still up 0.2 percent, though that followed a 2.7 percent slide last week when it hit a two-year low. Japan’s Nikkei clung to gains of 0.6 percent, having lost 2.1 percent last week even as a weak yen offered some support to exporters.

In Currency Markets the dollar started the week just off a 20-year high against peers on Monday, as investors sought safety due to fears about global growth while cryptocurrency markets appeared to find some stability after last week’s turmoil. The dollar index was at 104.54, having briefly crossed the 105 level on Friday, its highest since December 2002, after six successive weeks of gains. The single currency was at $1.0398 on Monday morning, only just above the $1.0354 level it hit on Thursday, its lowest since early 2017. Sterling, which has suffered along with the euro, was at $1.2256 on Monday.

In US Equity Markets stocks rose on Friday to end higher, closing the book on a week of wild market gyrations as relief at signs of peaking inflation vied with fears that policy tightening by the Federal Reserve could tilt the economy into recession. The Dow rose 1.47 percent, to 32,196.66, the S&P 500 gained 2.39 percent, to 4,023.89 and the Nasdaq Composite added 3.82 percent, to 11,805.00. Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway disclosed buying more shares of Occidental Petroleum, sending the oil company’s shares up 8.2 percent.

In Commodities Markets oil prices rose about 4 percent on Friday as U.S. gasoline prices jumped to a record high, China looked ready to ease pandemic restrictions and investors worried supplies will tighten if the European Union bans Russian oil. Brent futures rose 3.8 percent, to settle at $111.55 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 4.1 percent, to settle at $110.49. Spot gold fell 0.7 percent to $1,808.89 per ounce. Spot silver rose 1.6 percent to $20.98 per ounce. Platinum fell 0.8 percent to $936.51. Palladium gained 1.5 percent to $1,936.83, after falling over 8 percent on Thursday.

In European Equity Markets stocks rose on Friday, closing higher for the first time in five weeks, as a bout of bargain hunting took over after worries about aggressive monetary policy tightening and slowing global growth. The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 2.1 percent, with travel and leisure, banks and personal and household stocks leading gains. Deutsche Telekom gained 2.1 percent after it raised its annual earnings guidance. Norwegian Air gained 2.4 percent, as the airline posted a quarterly loss and said the rise in fuel costs would partly offset the effects of increased summer bookings.

In Bond Markets Treasury yields rose on Friday, reversing the week’s rally in bond prices driven by the largest weekly inflows since the COVID-19 pandemic slammed markets in March 2020, as fears of a Federal Reserve policy error and runaway inflation eased. The yield on 10-year Treasury notes rose 11.8 basis points to 2.935 percent, helped by Labor Department data that showed import prices surprisingly were flat in April. The yield on the 30-year Treasury bond rose 12.1 basis points to 3.092 percent. The two-year U.S. Treasury yield was up 7.4 basis points at 2.597 percent.