U.S. Stocks Set To Open Higher Amid Global Market Optimism

Russia Approves The World’s First COVID-19 Vaccine

Earlier today, Russia announced that it had approved its first COVID-19 vaccine, which is the first approved coronavirus vaccine in the world.

This vaccine has already faced significant criticism for rushed development and lack of big-scale testing.

However, Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) which oversees the development of the vaccine, stated that Russia had already received requests for 1 billion doses of the new vaccine from 20 countries.

For foreign markets, the vaccine will be marketed as ‘Sputnik V’. Kirill Dmitriev stated that RDIF was conducting negotiations with countries from Latin America, Middle East and Asia.

Most likely, the global markets will not view the first COVID-19 vaccine as a “silver bullet” against the pandemic as its testing has been limited.

However, the news about the approval of the world’s first COVID-19 vaccine are still positive for global stocks, and S&P 500 futures are gaining ground in premarket trading amid global market optimism.

Gold Drops Below The $2000 Level

Gold is experiencing a sell-off after the major rally. Interestingly, the U.S. Dollar Index is also losing ground today, but the weakness of the American currency does not help precious metals. Silver, platinum, palladium are also declining.

It is not clear whether the vaccine news had an impact on precious metals or they were simply positioned for a pullback after a major rally.

That said, today’s trading session is set to be challenging for gold and silver miners. The leading ETF for the gold mining sector, GDX, is already losing more than 3% in premarket trading.

U.S. Intends To Delist Chinese Companies That Do Not Comply With U.S. Accounting Standards

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin stated that foreign companies that fail to comply with U.S. accounting standards would be delisted from U.S. exchanges by the end of 2021.

The move is aimed at China but companies from other countries will also have to follow strict accounting rules or face delisting. Earlier this year, China’s Luckin Coffee was delisted due to fraudulent accounting practicies.

While China’s ability to retaliate on this front is limited, traders will continue to follow the story of increasing U.S. – China tensions and its potential impact of the trade deal between the world’s two biggest economies.

For a look at all of today’s economic events, check out our economic calendar.