European markets are anticipated to start Tuesday, the final trading session of 2024, on a subdued note. Many regional exchanges will close early today for New Year's Eve and will remain closed on Wednesday.
In Asia, markets experienced declines amid reserved year-end trading, and U.S. stock futures decreased as investors expressed concern over the protectionist policies of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. Additionally, there is a recalibration of expectations regarding significant U.S. interest rate cuts in 2025.
According to official data released today, China's factory activity grew at a slower rate in December, intensifying worries about the future of the world's second-largest economy.
Attention has also moved towards the strained U.S.-China relations following the U.S. Treasury Department's announcement of a recent hack by a Chinese state-backed actor, which resulted in unauthorized access to government employees' workstations and unclassified documents.
The U.S. dollar remained strong, set to register robust gains for 2024, driven by expectations that Trump's protectionist and fiscally expansive policies might spur inflation.
Gold prices remained steady above $2,600 per ounce, on track for their best annual performance in over a decade. Meanwhile, oil prices rose nearly 1 percent, continuing gains from the previous session amidst muted year-end trading.
On Monday, U.S. stocks concluded lower for the third consecutive session, influenced by year-end tax positioning and valuation concerns. The Dow declined by 1 percent, the Nasdaq Composite fell by 1.2 percent, and the S&P 500 decreased by 1.1 percent.
Economic reports revealed that the factory sector in the Chicago area decelerated more quickly at the end of 2024, while pending home sales climbed for the fourth consecutive month, achieving a 21-month peak in November.
In Europe, stocks ended Monday in negative territory as Spanish inflation exceeded expectations in December, and ECB Governing Council member Robert Holzmann indicated that the ECB might postpone its next interest rate cut. The pan-European STOXX 600 dropped 0.5 percent, Germany's DAX and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 each declined by 0.4 percent, and France's CAC 40 decreased by 0.6 percent.
