Investing.com - Here are the top five things you need to know in financial markets on Tuesday, September 12:
1. Global stocks extend relief rally to hit record highs
Global stock markets continued higher to hit an all-time peak, with investors breathing a sigh of relief as North Korean fears eased and the worst-case scenario from Hurricane Irma looked to have been avoided.
Asian shares hit their strongest level since late-2007, with benchmarks in Tokyo, Seoul and Shanghai all ending in positive territory.
In Europe, shares gained broadly in mid-morning trade, with almost all major bourses across the region in the green.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock futures pointed to more gains at the open on Wall Street, one day after the S&P 500 rose to an all-time high, with the major benchmarks up around 0.1%-to-0.2%.
2. Apple set to unveil iPhone X
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) will be in the spotlight as it unveils its new high-end smartphone, expected to be called the iPhone X, in its latest product launch event scheduled for 1:00PM ET (1700GMT). According to reports, the new phone, which could cost as much as $1,200, will feature an edge-to-edge display with richer colors and facial recognition.
Two other models, expected to be called the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus, are also likely to be unveiled.
In addition to its latest smartphones, Apple is expected to announce several products, such as the HomePod, as well as a big upgrade to the Apple Watch and a higher-definition Apple TV.
The splashy event will take place at the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple's new Apple Park "spaceship" campus.
Shares of Apple, which closed nearly 2% higher on Monday, added another 1.2% in pre-market trade.
3. Safe-haven bets continue to unwind
Investors continued to buy risk assets and sell havens like gold, the Japanese yen and sovereign bonds.
Prices of the yellow metal declined 0.4% to $1,331.18 a troy ounce, one day after tumbling 1.2%, its biggest one-day percentage drop since early July and well off last Friday's one-year peak of $1,362.40.
Meanwhile, the dollar was up 0.3% against the yen at 109.73, after rallying 1.4% a day earlier, its biggest one-day surge since mid-January and moving away from a 10-month nadir of 107.32 yen touched last Friday.
Investors also scaled back purchases of global bonds, pushing U.S. Treasury and German Bund yields sharply higher for the second straight day.
4. Sterling soars as UK inflation jumps to 5-year high
British consumer prices in August rose by 2.9% compared with a year earlier, the Office for National Statistics said, matching its highest level in more than five years. Economists had expected inflation to rise at a 2.8% rate last month from 2.6% in July.
Core inflation also accelerated more than economists expected, reaching 2.7%, the most since 2011.
The data added to speculation that the Bank of England could strike a more hawkish tone on interest rates at its upcoming policy meeting later this week.
Sterling jumped against the dollar, gaining around 0.7% to 1.3250, after rising to a one-year high of 1.3283 earlier in the session (GBP/USD).
5. Oil slides as focus shifts to U.S. stockpile data
Oil prices edged lower, as investors looked ahead to weekly data from the U.S. on stockpiles of crude and refined products to weigh what the impact of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma was on supply and demand.
Industry group the American Petroleum Institute is due to release its weekly report at 4:30PM ET (2030GMT). Official data from the Energy Information Administration will be released Wednesday, amid forecasts for an oil-stock gain of around 2.3 million barrels.
U.S. crude futures were down 23 cents, or around 0.5%, at $47.84 barrel, while Brent, the benchmark for oil prices outside the U.S., shed 25 cents to $53.58.
In addition to the supply data, market players awaited the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' monthly report to assess global supply and demand levels. The data will give traders a better picture of whether a global rebalancing is taking place in the oil market.