Global stock indexes rose yesterday as strong US jobs data reassured investors the US economy was still strengthening, while the dollar pulled back after hitting a three-year high against a basket of currencies.

Brent crude oil eased after rising sharply on unrest in Egypt, which stoked concerns about global oil supplies.

The upbeat US jobs data from Friday also fuelled some concern the Federal Reserve could soon start reducing its $85 billion per month stimulus, but stock investors seemed to focus more on what it said about the economy.

“We’ve turned the corner,” said Randy Frederick, managing director of active trading and derivatives for Charles Schwab in Austin, Texas. “Friday was a pivotal point for the market changing its focus from, ‘What is the Fed going to do to support the market?’ to ‘What’s going on in the economy?’”

MSCI’s global share index was up 0.3 per cent. Europe’s broad FTSEurofirst 300 stock index was up 1.4 per cent.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 69.26 points, or 0.46 per cent, at 15,205.10. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was up 6.77 points, or 0.41 per cent, at 1,638.66. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 0.72 points, or 0.02 per cent, at 3,478.66.

The dollar index was down 0.26 per cent at 84.217, having hit 84.588 earlier, its strongest since July 2010.

Analysts said the greenback should resume its uptrend as the Fed looks poised to power down its massive stimulus program.

In contrast, the European Central Bank and the Bank of England were more likely to ease monetary policy, while the Bank of Japan was expected to continue with aggressive stimulus, keeping the euro, sterling and yen weak.

Investor focus was also on Brussels, where Greece was expected to reach a deal over its latest aid payment at a meeting of euro zone finance ministers later in the day, and there was relief after weekend moves to calm Portugal’s political crisis. US Treasuries prices climbed on buying by bargain-minded investors, helping to bring benchmark yields down from near two-year highs.

A Reuters poll conducted after the release of Friday’s government payrolls data — which showed US employers added 195,000 jobs in June – found more than half of the major Wall Street bond firms surveyed expected the Fed would reduce its $85 billion monthly purchases of Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities in September.

The 10-year Treasury note last traded 19/32 higher in price to yield 2.662 per cent.

“Today we are trying to find a range before this week’s supply. Some people are thinking maybe Friday was overdone,” said Thomas Roth, executive director of US government bond trading at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities USA in New York.

The divergence between the US and other major economies is clear in bond markets, with 10-year Treasury yields spiking 23 basis points on Friday to around 2.75 per cent, highs last seen in August 2011.

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