Global Markets Mixed as AI Deals, Fed Rate Cut Expectations Offset Political Uncertainty
By Dow Jones Newswires StaffU.S. stock futures were down a touch early in Europe after the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both finished Monday's session at new highs. A wave of AI-driven tech deals and expectations of further Federal Reserve rate cuts have pushed stocks to record highs, even as the U.S. government shutdown continues and political uncertainty elsewhere has buoyed demand for safe-havens. Global stock markets started Tuesday narrowly mixed, gold hovered close to a key level while the euro and French bonds remained under pressure.U.S. futures for the S&P 500 were down 0.2% and futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq edged down 0.1% in early trade.In Europe, the Stoxx Europe 600 was flat shortly after the open. Germany's DAX rose a touch and France's CAC 40 was flat after falling 1.4% the prior session. French assets and the euro came under pressure Monday after Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu resigned less than a month after his appointment amid increasingly fraught budget negotiations.In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 index ended flat. The auction of 30-year Japanese government bonds drew solid demand, confirming investor appetite for high yields. Analysts had expected sluggish results amid concerns that Japan's debt conditions may worsen after the ruling party elected Sanae Takaichi, a proponent of expansive fiscal policy, as its new leader. Taiwan's TAIEX gained 1.7% helped a bit by TSMC, which got some spill-over boost from Monday's open AI/AMD deal. Markets in Hong Kong and China were closed.The euro faces further potential falls due to the renewed French political turmoil, while investors are also watching the spread between French and German government bond yields. The euro was recently down 0.2% to $1.1681, while the 10-year French OAT-German Bund yield spread was widening again, trading just below 87 basis points and up about 1.5 basis points on the day, according to LSEG data.Gold prices eased a touch after pushing closer to the $4,000 mark. Futures were last down 0.1% to $3,969.70 a troy ounce after reaching $3,977 earlier in the session. Goldman Sachs raised its December 2026 gold price forecast to $4,900 an ounce from $4,300 previously, citing ETFs inflows and central bank buying.The U.S. dollar was 0.2% higher against a basket of major currencies. U.S. Treasury yields declined; the 10-year Treasury yield was down 1.2 basis points at 4.149%, according to Tradeweb.Oil prices ticked lower after settling more than 1% higher in the previous session as OPEC+'s supply increase for November turned out to be more modest than expected.Write to Barcelona Editors at [email protected]