Markets were trading cautiously as news of a suspected terror attack in Manchester offset an overnight advance by Wall Street that took US stocks close to a fresh record. The dollar slipped to a more than six-month low on Monday, weighed down by an uncertain U.S. political climate, while oil prices rose on expectations that crude output cuts would continue and the euro surged.
- Gold was up 0.1% at $1,262 an ounce, its highest level this month. The metal was buoyed last week as investors became more wary about the prospects of US president Donald Trump carrying out proposed reforms, such as tax cuts and infrastructure spending.
- The U.K.’s FTSE 100 ended up 0.34%, boosted by slight weakness in the British pound. France’s CAC 40 failed to hold onto gains, closing down 0.03%, while Germany’s DAX ended 0.15% lower.
- Sterling was also on the move last trading at $1.2998, down 0.28% on the day, after polls showed Britain’s election race tightening and the country’s chief Brexit negotiator again threatened to walk away from EU exit talks unless the bloc eased its demands. Markets
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 89.99 points, or 0.43%, to 20,894.83, the S&P 500 gained 12.29 points, or 0.52%, to 2,394.02 and the Nasdaq Composite added 49.92 points, or 0.82%, to 6,133.62.
- Oil prices hit their highest in more than a month on growing confidence that OPEC and other producers would agree this week to extend supply cuts. WTI rose 0.73% to $51.04 per barrel and Brent was last at $53.75, up 0.26% on the day.Â
