The City of London financial district at sunrise.
Alexander Spatari | Moment | Getty Images
LONDON — European stocks opened negative on Monday as regional markets looked for momentum after a series of positive sessions last week.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 was 0.1% lower shortly after trading began, having notched five consecutive days of positive returns last week, including hitting an all-time high during Thursday’s session.
The U.K.’s FTSE index, Germany’s DAX, France’s CAC 40 and Italy’s FTSE MIB were all slightly negative shortly after 8:00 a.m. in London (3:00 a.m.) after ending Friday in positive territory.
U.S. stock futures were little changed Sunday night, after Wall Street also notched record highs despite the continuing government shutdown. Investors have appeared to shrug off worries about the shutdown, which has delayed the release of key economic data — including the September jobs report — originally due on Friday.
In Europe on Monday, data releases include Spanish industrial production figures and European and U.K. construction PMIs, reflecting business activity in the sector.
In France, new Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu named Roland Lescure finance minister as the government looks to reach an agreement over the country’s ongoing budget negotiations.
In Asia-Pacific markets overnight, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index jumped over 4% to hit a record high after the country’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party elected Sanae Takaichi as its new leader, positioning her to become the country’s first female prime minister.
