The Breakfast Briefing: U.SD. Futures Lower, Global Stocks Mixed Amid Trade Uncertainty

Ted

FYI: U.S. stock index futures turned lower Monday morning, after the U.S. agreed to suspend its next tariff increase on Chinese imports.

Around 5:50 a.m. ET, Dow futures indicated a drop of more than 115 points at the open. Futures on the S&P and Nasdaq were both slightly lower.

Market focus is largely attuned to global trade developments, amid the long-running U.S.-China trade dispute.

• Asian equities rally on optimism about U.S.-China trade deal

• European shares drop as region braces for fresh U.S. tariffs

• Pound weakens with Brexit-deal optimism wavering

Global stocks painted a mixed picture at the start of the week as optimism about a potential U.S.-China trade deal was offset by uncertainty surrounding Brexit and fresh tariffs in Europe.

Stocks in Asia, which had ended trading before President Trump said Friday that the U.S. and China had completed the early stages of a deal, rallied on the news Monday. The Shanghai Composite gauge advanced 1.2% while the benchmark Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong rose 0.9%. The Chinese yuan strengthened 0.4% to 7.0564 a dollar in offshore trading.

Over in Europe, the pound fell 0.5% against the dollar. The weekend of talks between European Union and British negotiators, who face a deadline this week to reach a deal on Brexit, failed to result in a breakthrough. Diplomats said even the outline of a deal looked difficult to clinch given the gap between the sides and the complexity of the issues, erasing some of last week’s optimism. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 barometer dropped 0.5%.

The pan-continental Stoxx Europe 600 gauge fell 0.7%, led by declines in basic-resources companies. Questions about economic growth prospects in the region continue to mount, especially after the U.S. earlier this month announced plans to hit European airlines, whiskey, cheese and hand tools with tariffs later this week.

While U.S. bond markets will be closed Monday in observance of Columbus Day, stock trading will resume, though likely with lower volumes than normal.

Regards,
Ted

WSJ:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/global-stocks-mixed-amid-trade-uncertainty-11571042265

Bloomberg:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-13/stocks-in-asia-to-advance-after-trade-progress-markets-wrap?srnd=premiumrg:

IBD:
https://www.investors.com/market-trend/stock-market-today/dow-jones-futures-china-trade-deal-spur-stock-market-rally-apple-stock-microsoft-stock-google-stock-nvidia/

CNBC::
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/14/stock-market-wall-street-in-focus-after-partial-us-china-trade-deal.html

Reuters:
https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-global-markets/global-stocks-slip-amid-lack-of-detail-on-trade-deal-idUKKBN1WT018

U.K.
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-stocks/uk-stocks-recoil-as-brexit-euphoria-cools-sophos-soars-idUKKBN1WT0SY

Europe:
https://www.reuters.com/article/europe-stocks/update-1-european-stocks-turn-down-after-brexit-trade-driven-rally-idUSL3N26Z1N6

Asia:
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/asian-markets-rise-on-relief-over-partial-us-china-trade-deal-2019-10-13/print

Bonds: (U.S. Bond Market Closed)
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/14/forex-markets-us-china-trade-in-focus.html

Currencies:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/14/forex-markets-us-china-trade-in-focus.html

Oil:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/14/oil-markets-iran-ship-attack-us-china-trade-in-focus.html

Gold:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/14/gold-markets-us-china-trade-in-focus.html

Cuirrent Futures:
https://finviz.com/futures.ashx