Asia stocks fell on Monday as investors scaled back expectations of an aggressive Federal Reserve interest rate cut, while crude oil prices rose on heightened Middle East tensions following Iran's seizure of a British tanker.
After weeks of speculation that interest rate cuts and another round of asset purchases are on their way, investors hope Thursday's European Central Bank meeting will give the clearest signal yet of imminent policy easing, if not the details.
Philadelphia Energy Solutions (PES) filed for its second Chapter 11 bankruptcy in less than two years on Sunday, a court filing showed, a month after a fire and explosion led to the permanent shutdown of the biggest oil refinery on the U.S. East Coast.
Dutch health technology company Philips on Monday reported a better-than-expected 6% rise in comparable sales for the second quarter, helped by strong demand for its hospital equipment in China and the United States.
Halliburton Co on Monday beat analysts' estimates for second-quarter profit, as higher international demand for its oilfield services cushioned weakness in North America, its largest market.
Oil prices rose on Monday on concerns that Iran's seizure of a British tanker last week may lead to supply disruptions in the Middle East Gulf, although gains were capped as Libya resumed output at its largest oil field.
European stocks struggled higher on Monday, shrugging off dialed-down expectations for a big U.S. rate cut this month, while escalating tensions in the Middle East boosted safe-haven assets and oil prices.
Oil prices rose more than 2% on Monday on concerns that Iran's seizure of a British tanker last week may lead to supply disruptions in the energy-rich Gulf.
Rising healthcare spending by the Chinese government helped Dutch health technology company Philips post better-than-expected sales growth for the second quarter, putting its shares among the top performers in Europe on Monday.
South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co laid out its U.S. sales turnaround plan on Monday with an expanded line-up of sport-utility vehicles (SUV), after posting its biggest quarterly profit jump in seven years.
General Electric is scheduled to report second-quarter earnings at the end of the month.
Bayer AG , facing an upcoming trial in St. Louis over allegations that its Roundup weed killer causes cancer, has recruited Missouri-based expert witnesses to make its case in a place where it has century-old roots but where juries often hit companies with huge damages.
An abrupt sell-off could be around the corner if the Fed doesn't deliver the expected rate cut next week, the firm says.
The so-called FANG stocks take center stage on Wall Street this week, with Amazon , Alphabet and Facebook set to report as the S&P 500 approaches a record high.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is expected to announce a roughly $5 billion settlement with Facebook Inc as early as this week of its investigation into the social media company’s handling of user data, two sources briefed on the matter said on Monday.