European markets were expected to open lower on Monday, pressured by speculation that U.S. President Donald Trump would move forward with new tariffs on Chinese goods as early as later today. As reported by Reuters, France’s CAC is expected to open around 9 points lower, the FTSE 100 is forecasted to open 14 points lower and the DAX is likely to open down by 35 points.
Asian markets traded mixed on Monday with most major indexes lower. The Shanghai Composite was down 0.99 percent as of 2:56 p.m. HK/SIN. South Korea’s Kospi was down 0.66 percent and the Shenzhen Composite was down 1.43 percent. Only Japan’s Nikkei 225 managed to soar, heading up 1.20 percent. Australia’s ASX 200 was 0.32 percent higher.
Though there are additional talks in the works between the U.S. and China planned for later this month but rumors are circulating that China will decline to participate if President Trump moves forward with the next wave of tariffs beforehand. Chinese officials have also publicized their idea to restrict their sale of parts and supplies to the U.S., a move that could damage American businesses and disrupt the supply chain.
Chinese Banking Measures
Peoples Bank of China Governor Yi Gang wrote recently that he supports China’s opening of its financial markets to global competitiveness. He wrote in his recently released essay that he doesn’t believe his country’s markets are broad enough and that they must be more strongly integrated with international markets. Among the efforts Yi supports are exchange rate reform and a possible link for the Shanghai and London stock exchanges.