Global Markets React Following Trump’s COVID Diagnosis

Early Friday morning, US president Donald Trump tweeted that both he and the First Lady had tested positive for COVID-19, causing volatility in various global financial markets. Stocks, cryptocurrencies, and commodities dropped, but it was Oil traders who felt the largest shakeup as prices dropped by as much as 5% on Friday.

This 5% drop notched Oil future’s biggest weekly fall since June 2020, reaching nearly $38 per barrel. Relatively, the S&P 500 (USA500) dipped just 1.7% and the US Dollar index (USDX)  has remained fairly stable at 0.1% also since Friday.

President Trump’s Recovery From COVID

With reports of Donald Trump’s condition improving, Oil, US Futures and Stocks climbed today, recovering some of last week’s losses.  

While markets are ticking up, conflicting medical reports leave Trump’s health condition uncertain to the general public. For the moment, there has been a minimal impact on the broader financial markets, even though US elections are less than a month away. 

Futures and Stocks Rise 

Cautious optimism about President Trump being able to leave the hospital in the coming days has led to Oil Futures rising 6.5% today. This is in addition to the S&P 500 rising +0.38%, the Nasdaq (USTech-100) +0.64%, and the Dow (USA 30- Wall Street) +0.55% during morning trading.

Globally, the FTSE 100 index (UK100) climbed and the pound (GBP/USD) continues to remain volatile, as representatives begin two weeks of Brexit talks. Asian and emerging market stocks also went up while Gold and Silver retreated.

Stocks strengthened in Hong Kong, Japan and Australia, over a public holiday. However, it was the South Korean KOSPI which had the biggest rise of 1.29% on Monday. 

Global markets seem to remain affected by Trump’s positive COVID result and it is unclear how market movements will react until he has recovered.