Global markets await to react to US President Donald Trump's meeting with Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders on Monday afternoon and the gathering of top central banks on Friday in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
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World shares are mixed ahead of US President Donald Trump’s meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders later on Monday afternoon.
Markets showed scant reaction to Trump’s inconclusive summit meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday. Investors are also watching for cues from an annual meeting in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, of top central bankers later this week.
Global markets on Monday morning
In early European trading, Germany's DAX lost 0.2% to 24,303.26, while the CAC 40 in Paris dropped 0.5% to 7,881.74. Britain's FTSE 100 was little changed at 9,137.31.
The futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged 0.1% lower. On Friday, the S&P 500 fell 0.3%. The Dow industrials edged 0.1% higher, while the Nasdaq composite sank 0.4%.
During Asia's day, Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 0.8% to 43.714.31.
The Hang Seng in Hong Kong gave up early gains, losing 0.4% to close at 25,176.85.
The Shanghai Composite index jumped 1% to 3,732.44. It's trading near it's highest level in a decade.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 picked up 0.2% to 8,959.30.
The Kospi in South Korea declined 1.5% to 3,177.28 on heavy selling of semiconductor makers like Samsung Electronics, whose shares fell 2.2%. SK Hynix lost 3.3% as investors fretted over the possibility of more US tariffs on computer chips.
In other dealings early Monday, US benchmark crude oil rose 7 cents to $62.87 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international standard, climbed 3 cents to $65.88 per barrel.
The US dollar rose to 147.37 Japanese yen from 147.18 yen. The euro slipped to $1.1682 from $1.1703.
Trump meets Zelenskyy
Trump's meeting with Zelenskyy will include other European leaders who were not included in the president's talks in Anchorage, Alaska, with Putin. The European allies are seeking to present a united front in safeguarding Ukraine and the continent from any widening aggression from Moscow.
An annual meeting in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, of top central bankers later this week will be watched closely for hints about possible interest rate cuts from Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell. He is due to speak Friday at the economic policy conference.
“While the official theme is labour markets, investors will scrutinise any hint of September policy direction, especially after last week’s mixed inflation data,” Ipek Ozkardeskaya of Swissquote said in a commentary, adding that “any progress on Ukraine peace talks could push global equities higher still.”
Expectations have been building that the Fed will cut interest rates at its next meeting in September, though mixed reports on the US economy have undercut those bets somewhat.
One report Friday said shoppers boosted their spending at US retailers last month, while another said manufacturing in New York state unexpectedly grew. A third said industrial production across the country shrank last month, when economists were looking for modest growth.
Yet another report suggested sentiment among US consumers is worsening due to worries about inflation, when economists expected to see a slight improvement.
