Live Markets: Before the bell: lacklustre start to the week
LIVE MARKETS-Before the bell: lacklustre start to the week Adds blog post
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BEFORE THE BELL: LACKLUSTRE START TO THE WEEK
European equities are set for a lacklustre start to the week: Euro STOXX 50 futures STXEc1 are 0.1% lower, as are CAC FCEc1 futures, while FTSE FFIc1 and DAX FDXc1 futures are around 0.2% down each.
Central banks are coming into focus this week, with the European Central Bank due to announce its latest policy decision on Thursday - markets are widely expecting a 25 basis point rate hike, and are keen to see if what policymakers have to say about the potential policy path ahead.
That may well of course depend on how the energy price shock develops and how broad its impact on prices turns out to be. Brent crude futures LCOc1 are up 1.4% at $97.58 a barrel after the U.S. and Iran extended strikes on vessels in the Gulf.
Back in Europe, political risks are creeping in with Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) surging into first place in state elections in Saxony-Anhalt on Sunday - yet another setback for conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
And finally in corporate news, traders are calling Novartis shares down around 5% whe when trading begins after its experimental drug pelacarsen did not cut the risk of major heart attacks and strokes in patients with a genetic risk factor in a late-stage trial.
Elsewhere, British insurer Standard Life SDLF.L posted better-than-expected profit for the first half on Monday, and the Sunday Times reported that Dutch private equity firm Waterland plans to make an offer for British telecommunications company Gamma Communications GAMA.L that exceeds a bid from British private equity firm Epiris.
All the while, there's a holiday in the U.S.
(Sophie Kiderlin)
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