CHINA DATA DUMP
EUROSTOXX 50 futures edged up 0.2 per cent, while FTSE futures fell 0.2 per cent and DAX futures were flat. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures were both little changed.
While the Nikkei was shut, futures stood at 44,570 just below the cash close of 44,768, having climbed more than 4 per cent last week. South Korea’s market rose 0.4 per cent to another record top after surging almost 6 per cent last week on investor optimism over AI technologies and domestic market reforms.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dipped 0.1 per cent.
Yields on 10-year Treasuries stood at 4.07 per cent, having hit a five-month low of 3.994 per cent last week as a run of soft labour data added to the case for aggressive Fed easing.
The three-month average of nonfarm payrolls has slowed to 29,000, well below the 10-year trend of 145,000 and too low to stop the unemployment rate from rising over time.
Data due this week includes retail sales, industrial output, housing starts and weekly jobless claims.
China reports retail sales and industrial production later on Monday and forecasts are for little improvement in either.
US and Chinese officials concluded a first day of talks in Madrid on Sunday on their strained trade ties, and will resume later on Monday.
Trump said he was still negotiating on the divestiture deadline for Chinese short-video app TikTok, while pressuring Washington’s allies to place tariffs on imports from China over its purchases of Russian oil.
The threat of further sanctions on Russia offered some support to oil prices, though concerns about slowing US demand and increased production from OPEC were dominating for the moment.
Brent was little changed at US$67.01 a barrel, while US crude firmed a fraction to US$62.77 per barrel.
Gold was down 0.1 per cent at US$3,639 an ounce, not far from last week’s all-time high of US$3,673.95.
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