Global stocks most lower amid trade uncertainty

A man walks past an electronic stock board showing Japan’s Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm in Tokyo Tuesday, May 15, 2018. Asian shares were mostly lower in muted trading Tuesday amid continuing uncertainty over trade tensions between China and the US (Photo by EUGENE HOSHIKO / AP)

TOKYO — Global shares were mixed in muted trading Tuesday amid continuing uncertainty over trade tensions between China and the US Investors were watching for US retail sales data due out later in the day.

Keeping score

France’s CAC 40 inched up less than 0.1 percent in early trading to 5,543.88, while Britain’s FTSE 100 added 0.2 percent to 7,724.36.

Germany’s DAX slipped 0.2 percent to 12,957.66. US shares were set to drift lower with Dow futures down 0.2 percent at 24,827. S&P 500 futures were also lower, down nearly 0.3 percent at 2,724.

Asia’s day

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 edged 0.2 percent lower to 22,818.02. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.6 percent to 6,097.80. South Korea’s Kospi slipped 0.7 percent to 2,458.54 while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 1.2 percent to 31,152.03. The Shanghai Composite climbed 0.6 percent to 3,192.12.

China factor

President Donald Trump tweeted Sunday that he was working with President Xi Jinping of China to put Chinese telecom ZTE “back into business, fast” after US sanctions threatened ZTE’s existence and 70,000 Chinese jobs. Trade talks were due to resume in Washington on Tuesday.

Trump has proposed imposing tariffs on up to $150 billion in Chinese products. In retaliation, Beijing is threatening tariffs on $50 billion in US products.

Wall Street

The S&P 500 index added 2.41 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,730.13 on Monday. The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 68.24 points, or 0.3 percent, to 24,899.41.

The Nasdaq composite rose 8.43 points, or 0.1 percent, to 7,411.32. Small-company stocks fell. The Russell 2000 index lost its early gains, sliding 6.45 points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,600.34.

The quote

“There’s a number of data releases that will grab traders’ attention today and could determine whether we see an early rebound in stock markets. The most notable of these is the retail sales data for April, which is expected to be relatively good for a second consecutive month following a few poor numbers that were a little worrying,” Craig Erlam, a senior market analyst for Oanda, said in a commentary.

Energy

Benchmark US crude oil gained 13 cents to $71.09 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It rose 26 cents to $70.96 a barrel in New York on Monday.

Brent crude, used to price international oil, gained 40 cents to $78.63 a barrel in London.

Currencies

The dollar rose to 109.90 yen from 109.53 yen late Monday. The euro weakened to $1.1927 from $1.1974.