Shares up on vaccine supply; silver jumps due to day trading

Global stock markets are up after coronavirus vaccine maker AstraZeneca agreed to provide more doses to Europe amid rising worries about the disease

BEIJING — Global stock markets rose Monday after coronavirus vaccine maker AstraZeneca agreed to increase supplies to Europe amid rising worries about the disease.

European indexes were all up by more than 1% after Shanghai and Tokyo closed higher.

Futures for the Dow and S&P 500 were up 0.9% and 1.1% following Friday’s decline after GameStop, a video game vendor, and other shares were sent soaring by day traders. Investors said hedge funds that bet against those stocks were losing money and selling other shares, depressing the overall market.

Shares of GameStop Corp. swung in a 13-point range before the opening bell Monday with trading still limited on retail trading platforms like Robin Hood, moving between gains and losses.

Silver rose almost 12% to $30.07 in London after novice traders who drove up GameStop turned their attention to metals. The price is silver’s highest since December 2012.

Markets were last week also rattled by AstraZeneca’s announcement it would supply the European Union with fewer than half the promised doses, which prompted the EU to impose export controls. On Sunday, AstraZeneca promised to increase European supplies and start delivery earlier.

“Concerns around the pandemic seemed to return in full force as vaccine distribution and efficacy issues re-emerged even with the virus spread gaining momentum,” said Mizuho Bank in a report.

The FTSE 100 in London rose 1.2% to 6,485 and Frankfurt’s DAX advanced 1.5% to 13,636. The CAC 40 in Paris rose 1.5% to 5,478.

In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.6% to 3,505.28 and the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo advanced 1.6% to 28,091.05. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 2.1% to 28,892.86.

The Kospi in Seoul surged 2.7% to 3,056.53 and Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 added 0.8% to 6,663.00. India’s Sensex opened down 0.2% at 46,759.42.

A purchasing managers’ index issued by business magazine Caixin declined to 51.5 from December’s 53 on a 100-point scale on which numbers above 50 reflect activity expanding. A separate PMI by the official statistics agency showed similar weakening.

The data suggest China’s rebound “is leveling off,” said Julian Evans-Pritchard of Capital Economics in a report.

Investors have bid up stocks in expectation the rollout of coronavirus vaccines would allow global business and travel to return to normal. That optimism has been dented by new infection spikes and disruptions in vaccine deliveries.

On Wall Street, anxiety mounted over the struggle between hedge funds and day traders over GameStop, AMC Entertainment and a handful of other stocks.

Investors are watching negotiations in Washington over President Joe Biden’s proposed $1.9 trillion economic aid package. Hopes for aid, along with the Federal Reserve’s pledge to keep low-cost credit plentiful, have carried the S&P 500 and other major indexes to record highs.

“Most market forecasts anticipate a smaller package that happens sooner,” Stephen Innes of Axi said in a report.

In energy markets, benchmark U.S. crude rose 38 cents to $52.59 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 14 cents on Friday. Brent crude, the basis for pricing international oils, gained 61 cents to $55.65 per barrel in London.

The dollar gained to 104.93 yen from 104.75 yen. The euro fell to $1.2079 from $1.2132.