Global stocks mixed amid lingering trade tensions
Wall Street stocks led by tech shares shook off trade war fears to finish higher on Monday as markets remained on edge in anticipation of new US tariffs on Chinese goods. Trade war worries pushed equity markets in Europe and Asia lower amid lingering tensions between the US and major trading partners China and the European Union. US stocks too were in negative territory much of the session, but reversed course in the afternoon after President Donald Trump denied reports that he was considering exiting the World Trade Organization. But markets remain jittery over trade tensions. A note from Oxford Economics warned of risk of "serious escalation" of global trade tensions, marking a "significant" threat to global growth. "Investors continue to be fearful about the global trade situation," said David Madden, analyst at CMC Markets UK. Trump, in a weekend television interview, reiterated tariff threats against the EU and said it was "possibly as bad as China" in terms of its trade policies. The EU has rejected Trump's accusations that its terms of trade are unfair, and threatened levies on up to $294 billion of US goods if Trump pushes ahead with punishing tariffs threatened on European autos. Tensions also remain high between the Washington and Beijing as the US is set to impose additional tariffs on tens of billions in Chinese goods starting Friday. Shanghai stocks, which are down 20 percent from their recent highs, fell 2.5 percent Monday. "China's economy will slow down for the rest of the year, but we don't need to worry about any stall yet," said Zhu Qibing, chief macroeconomy analyst at BOC International China in Beijing. "The key is how international trade and the dispute between China and the US will evolve." In the US, both the Dow and S&P 500 finished with modest gains. But the tech-rich Nasdaq ended up 0.8 percent, boosted by solid gains from tech giants including Apple, Microsoft and Google parent Alphabet. Oil prices retreated after Trump tweeted at the weekend that Saudi Arabia's King Salman had agreed to his request to open crude oil taps wider. On currency markets, the euro was pressured by worries about the future of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's coalition government. The German leader, whose nation is the economic powerhouse of Europe, is facing a major crisis over immigration policy. Late Monday, Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said he had reached an agreement with Merkel on migration "after very intense negotiations." - Key figures around 2100 GMT - New York - Dow: UP 0.2 percent at 24,307.18 (close) New York - S&P 500: UP 0.3 percent at 2,726.71 (close) New York - Nasdaq: UP 0.8 percent at 7,567.69 (close) London - FTSE 100: DOWN 1.2 percent at 7,547.85 (close) Frankfurt - DAX 30: DOWN 0.6 percent at 12,238.17 (close) Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.9 percent at 5,276.76 (close) EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.7 percent at 3,372.21 (close) Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 2.2 percent at 21,811.93 (close) Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 2.5 percent at 2,775.56 (close) Hong Kong - Hang Seng: Closed for a holiday Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1642 from $1.1684 at 2100 GMT Friday Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3143 from $1.3208 Dollar/yen: UP at 110.86 yen from 110.76 yen Oil - Brent Crude: DOWN $1.93 at $77.30 per barrel Oil - West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 21 cents at $73.94 per barrel burs-jmb/dg
