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"My bet is that the vaccine will be readily available, at least, by March," the "Mad Money" host said.

Asian stocks opened higher on Tuesday as COVID-19 vaccine progress shored up global sentiment and U.S. President-elect Joe Biden was given the go-ahead to begin his White House transition. U.S. General Services Administration chief Emily Murphy wrote in a letter to Biden on Monday that he can formally begin the hand-over process. President Donald Trump tweeted that he had told his team "do what needs to be done with regard to initial protocols," an indication he was moving toward a transition after weeks of legal challenges to the election results.

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. equity futures and Asian stocks climbed Tuesday after the triggering of a formal transition process to President-elect Joe Biden. The dollar dipped.S&P 500 contracts advanced after the General Service Administration acknowledged Biden as the apparent winner of the presidential election. Stocks opened higher in Japan and rose in Australia. Earlier, U.S. equities closed in the green, with tech shares lagging and small caps jumping. AstraZeneca Plc became the latest firm to deliver positive vaccine news, bolstering demand for cruise-line operators and airlines. Treasury yields extended an advance.Sentiment also was boosted after people familiar with the matter said Biden plans to nominate former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen to be Treasury secretary. Gold held overnight losses, while oil fluctuated.The latest vaccine successes have added to a risk-on mood in markets. Investors have snapped up assets that could benefit from the end of lockdowns, even as the virus rages across the U.S. and Europe. Traders have also started to anticipate Congress will again deliver a spending bill to stave off the economic effects of new restrictions aimed at slowing the pathogen.A Covid-19 vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca prevented a majority of people from getting the disease in a large trial and the rollout could begin next month. The vaccine stopped an average of 70% of participants from falling ill, an early analysis of the data show. The effectiveness rose to 90% for one of two regimens, close to the high bar set by Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc.“Having that end date on the calendar, with what looks like possibly three effective vaccines defines the bottom,” Brent Schutte, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Chief Investment Strategist, said on Bloomberg TV. “I think investors will come in and buy the dip, and I do think you will continue to have the rotation to those value names, small-cap names, things that are leveraged to the economic cycle.”Meanwhile, data showed U.S. business activity powered ahead in November at the fastest pace since March 2015.Here are some key events coming up:Minutes of the most recent Federal Open Market Committee meeting are due Wednesday.U.S. jobless claims, GDP and personal spending data come Wednesday.U.K. expected on Wednesday to deliver the government’s spending plans for next year.Thursday sees a policy decision and briefing from the Bank of Korea.U.S. celebrates the Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday.The week ends with Black Friday, the traditional start of the U.S. holiday shopping season.These are the main moves in markets:StocksS&P 500 futures rose 0.5% as of 9:33 a.m. in Tokyo. The S&P 500 Index climbed 0.6%.Topix index rose 2.1%.Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 1%.Kospi index added 0.6%.Hang Seng Index contracts fell 0.2% earlier.CurrenciesThe yen traded at 104.59 per dollar, down 0.1%.The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index dipped 0.1%.The offshore yuan was at 6.5718 per dollar, up 0.2%.The euro traded at $1.1843.BondsThe yield on 10-year Treasuries rose about one basis point to 0.87%.Australia’s 10-year bond yield rose four basis points to 0.89%.CommoditiesWest Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.2% to $43.13 a barrel.Gold was at about $1,835 an ounce, down 0.2%.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

The yen was on the back foot while riskier currencies were supported on Tuesday on rising optimism following news U.S. President-elect Joe Biden is expected to tap former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen as U.S. Treasury Secretary. Also underpinning the risk-on mood, President Donald Trump gave the head of the General Services Administration the go-ahead to proceed with a transition for Biden's administration despite plans to continue with legal challenges. Yellen has called for increased government spending to boost the U.S. economy out of a deep recession brought on by the coronavirus and has frequently cited growing economic inequality in the United States as a threat to America's values and its future.

"I think you have to buy a couple of these vaccine winners on any weakness, although when it comes to retail, I just say buy some," the "Mad Money" host said.

Investor focus on Tuesday will likely be on the continued positive momentum surrounding the race for a coronavirus vaccine.