Global stocks edged lower on Monday and gold surged to a six-month high as data showed a sharp decline in China’s industrial profits. With China’s PMI numbers expected on Thursday, markets are anxiously waiting to see if the world’s second-largest economy is on course for deflation.
New York stock futures largely declined, with S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures each falling by 0.2%. Those on the Dow Jones Industrial Average slumped by 0.3%. The Stoxx Europe 600 fell by 0.3%, as did the MSCI Asia Pacific Index.
Having closed above $2,000 per ounce on Friday, spot gold rose by a further 0.6% to $2,013.31 per ounce. The bond market remained relatively static, with the 10-year US Treasury yield rising 0.2% while the German and the UK equivalents remained little changed. The price of Brent crude slumped by 1.2% to $79.65 per barrel.