Global Markets Mixed at Start of Key Week
By Dow Jones Newswires StaffU.S. stock futures pointed to a flat to modestly higher open at the start of a key week, with the Federal Reserve widely expected to cut interest rates by a quarter percentage point. With an uncertain rate path in the new year, Fed Chair Jerome Powell's comments will be closely monitored. U.S. weekly jobless claims and trade data for September are due Thursday. There are also central bank decisions from Australia on Tuesday, Canada on Wednesday and Switzerland on Thursday.Elsewhere, Chinese government data earlier on Monday showed that its trade surplus topped $1 trillion this year, comfortably beating forecasts.On the corporate front, Oracle reports earnings on Wednesday, as does Adobe, followed by Broadcom on Thursday.U.S. Nasdaq stock futures were up 0.2% early in European business hours, those for the S&P 500 were up 0.1% and futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were flat. Changes in futures don't necessarily predict movements after the opening bell.In Europe, France's CAC 40 fell 0.3%, with cosmetics firm L'Oreal dropping 1.7% after announcing plans to acquire an additional 10% in Switzerland-based Galderma Group. Germany's DAX edged up 0.1% after a better-than-expected industrial production print showed output up 1.8% in October. Rheinmetall gained 2.8% after a new order from the German army. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 added 0.1%.Stock markets in Asia were mixed; Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 0.2% while Hong Kong's Hang Seng declined 1.2%. China's benchmark Shanghai Composite climbed 0.5%. Underpinning the country's soaring trade surplus, data showed shipments to the European Union rose 14.8% in November from less than 1% in October."The role of trade rerouting in offsetting the drag from U.S. tariffs still appears to be increasing," said Zichun Huang, an economist at Capital Economics.The U.S. dollar eased ahead of the Fed's policy decision. "We expect Powell to emphasize that the hurdle for further cuts in early 2026 is high, signaling a near-term pause," Deutsche Bank analysts said in a note. The DXY dollar index against a basket of major currencies was last down 0.1% to 98.866.Bitcoin edged higher as expectations for another interest-rate cut by the Fed supported risk appetite. It was recently trading up 1.6% to $91,700, according to LSEG dataU.S. Treasury yields edged up. "There is now the event risk of Wednesday's FOMC decision to navigate, where any signs of hawkishness could trigger a short-term hit to sentiment," said Pepperstone's Michael Brown in a note. However, Fed hawkishness should be viewed as a buying opportunity, the senior research strategist said. The 10-year Treasury yield edged up 0.4 basis point to 4.142%, according to Tradeweb data. The Treasury will auction $58 billion in three-year notes on Monday, $39 billion in 10-year notes on Tuesday and $22 billion in 30-year bonds on Thursday.Eurozone government bond yields were also up, with the 10-year German Bund yield rising to 2.828%, the highest level since March, according to LSEG data. Bund yields have crept higher lately as investors eye increasing government bond supply in 2026.In commodities, oil prices were a touch lower; Brent crude fell 0.2% to $63.64 a barrel, while WTI fell 0.1% to $60 a barrel after closing on Friday at their highest level in more than two weeks. Gold prices slipped a touch but continued to be supported by a softer U.S. dollar. Futures in New York fell 0.1% to $4,237.90 a troy ounce, while spot gold eased 0.2% to $4,198.69 an ounce.Write to Barcelona Editors at [email protected]