Oil prices drop; stock markets soar

Oil prices have fallen by about US$20 in almost 12 hours, marking one of the sharpest single-day drops in history.

Stock markets around the world, meanwhile, are benefiting from heavy buying by investors and the collapse in oil prices.

Brent crude fell 16.02%, or US$17, to trade at an intraday low of US$91.72, down from the US$109 level at which it had been trading. Its counterpart, WTI, dropped 17.46%, or US$20, to trade at US$93.23.

The oil crash triggered a sharp correction in the US dollar. The DXY index, which measures the performance of the US dollar against a basket of six international currencies, fell 1.12% to 98.555 units.

Japan’s Nikkei has surged 5.39% and South Korea’s Kospi 7.52%; meanwhile, the S&P 500 is up 2.43% and the Nasdaq is up 3.05%. The decline in bond yields, with the Fed in the background, is also providing a boost.

The Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) posted a gain of 3.68% in the first minutes of trading, reaching 71,000 points.