Risk rally picks up steam with European stocks and US T-bond yields posting strong gains

• Reports on coronavirus vaccine breakthrough help market sentiment improve.
• S&P 500 futures are up 0.9% on Wednesday.
• Major European equity indexes and US T-bond yields extend rally.

Risk-on flows continue to dominate the markets on Wednesday on hopes of the coronavirus outbreak having a limited impact on the global economy. According to the latest headlines, British scientists have made a 'significant breakthrough' in the development of a vaccine.

"Conventional approaches usually take at least two to three years before you even get to the clinic. And we've gone from that sequence to generating a candidate in the laboratory in 14 days," Professor Robin Shattock, head of mucosal infection and immunity at Imperial College London, told Sky News on Wednesday. Shattock further added that they could have the vaccine ready for humans in a few months" given they have adequate funding.

Global stocks continue to push higher

Reflecting the upbeat market mood, the Euro Stoxx 50 Index is up 0.9% on the day while Germany's DAX 30 and the UK's FTSE 100 are adding 1.15% and 0.72%, respectively.

Additionally, the 10-year US Treasury Bond yield, which rose nearly 5% on Tuesday, is up 1.9% and the S&P 500 futures are adding 0.9%. Moreover, the USD/JPY is trading at its highest level since January 23rd at 109.67, up 0.15% on a daily basis.