European and U.S. stocks both edged lower and oil extended its losses on Tuesday morning after economic data from China proved weaker than expected.
Chinese imports declined last month, thereby indicating that the country’s rebound following its extensive Covid zero program has been slower than expected. The Hang Seng Index declined by 2% following the report.
Futures on the S&P 500 lost 0.3%, as did those on the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Contracts on the Nasdaq 100 were down by 0.4%. In Europe, the Stoxx Europe 600 plunged by 0.6%.
Oil extended its losses, with West Texas Intermediate—the U.S. benchmark—falling 0.9% to $72.49 per barrel. Gold futures edged higher by 0.1% to $2,035.40 per ounce.
Looking at currencies, the U.S. dollar remained little changed, with both Bloomberg Spot Dollar Index and the British pound remaining level. The euro declined 0.2% to $1.0980.
Bonds in both the U.S. and Europe fell on Tuesday, with the yield on U.S. 10-year Treasuries falling to 3.48%. Germany’s 10-year yield; the European benchmark, declined to 2.29%.