European equity markets expected slightly higher, led by Wall Street. The Eurostoxx 50 opens at 4,287.98 points (+0.77%), the CAC 40 at 7,140.39 points (+0.76%), the DAX 40 at 15,835.25 points (+0.50% ), the FTSE 100 at 7,372.10 points (-0.02%), the SMI at 12,866.90 points (+0.64%), the AEX at 797.30 points (+0.86%), the BEL 20 at 4,285.23 points (+0.49%), IBEX 35 at 8,622.10 points (+0.68%), DJIA at 36,302.38 points (+0.98%), Nasdaq at 15,871.26 points (+1.39%), the S&P 500 at 4,791.19 points (+1.38%) and the Nikkei 225 at 29,069.16 points (+1.37%).

Regarding exchange rates, the change from the close in New York indicates that EUR/USD opens at 1.1329 (+0.01%), EUR/JPY at 130.12 (-0.02%) and USD/JPY at 114.87 (-0.03%).

Futures in European equity markets are trending higher on Tuesday morning, following a positive performance from Wall Street on Monday. At 7:25 a.m., the CAC 40 futures contract was up 14.1 points, or 0.2%, according to data from broker IG Markets. The DAX 40 contract gained 24 points, or 0.2%. The London Stock Exchange will remain closed on Tuesday due to a public holiday.

The New York Stock Exchange ended higher on Monday and lifted the S&P 500 to a new all-time high, continuing to rise despite the repercussions of the spread of the Omicron variant on the airline sector. Signing its 69th record of the year, the S&P 500 index closed up 1.4% to 4,791.19 points. The New York Stock Exchange rose in the previous three sessions and the S&P 500 index had already reached a new closing record on Thursday. On Monday, the market was carried by a 2.4% rise in crude oil prices, despite the cancellation of many flights in the airline sector due to the progress of Omicron.

In Asia, equity markets rose on Tuesday. In Japan, the Nikkei index closed up 1.4%, in weak trading. The index was supported by electronic stocks as fears over the Omicron variant eased somewhat. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index gained 0.04% at the end of the session, while the Shanghai Composite index took 0.1%.

Yields on US government bonds moved in a mixed fashion on Monday, with those on long-term debt falling slightly, while that on the two-year note hit a new high. The bond market was closed on Friday for Christmas. The yield on the two-year Treasury note hit its highest level since March 2020, helped by a poor auction. Tuesday morning, the rate of the ten-year US government bond fell by 0.5 basis point, to 1.474%, while that of the two-year title lost 0.8 basis point, to 0.750%.

The euro is stable Tuesday morning against the dollar and the yen. The greenback is almost unchanged against the Japanese currency.

Oil futures are up slightly Tuesday morning as demand for crude will remain robust in 2022, according to projections from S&P Global Platts. At 7:25 a.m., the February North Sea Brent contract was taking 10 cents, at $78.70 a barrel. The same-maturity contract on light sweet crude (WTI) listed on the Nymex gained 18 cents, to 75.75 dollars a barrel.