European Shares Set To Open Higher With Economic Data And Geopolitics In Focus

(RTTNews) - European stocks are seen opening a tad higher on Monday as investors brace for a busy week ahead.

A U.S. tariff deadline on China is due to expire on Tuesday, with investors waiting to see whether the 90-day tariff truce would be extended.

According to the Financial Times, chip giants Nvidia and AMD have agreed to pay the U.S. government 15 percent of revenue from their semiconductor sales in China as part of a deal with the Trump administration to secure export licenses.

Traders eagerly look forward to U.S. President Trump's scheduled meeting with Russian President Vladimir V. Putin on Friday in Alaska to assess potential tariff moves by Trump on India and China.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Putin of trying to 'legalize the occupation' of Kyiv's territories and insisted that any decisions taken that are without Ukraine are at the same time decisions against peace.

On the economic front, U.S. reports on consumer and producer prices, retail sales, industrial production and consumer sentiment may shed further light on the state of the world's largest economy and offer potential clues on the Fed's rate trajectory.

The CPI report will be released on Tuesday, with analysts expecting the core inflation to rise at an annual pace of 3.0 percent, well above the Federal Reserve target of 2 percent.

Asian stocks were mostly higher, with Japanese markets closed for a holiday. Focus shifted to upcoming Chinese retail sales and industrial output data after consumer and producer price data at the weekend underscored the impact of sluggish domestic demand and persistent trade uncertainty on consumer and business sentiment.

Copper hit over one-week high on a weaker dollar while gold slipped to trade below $3,380 per ounce on easing geopolitical tensions.

Oil traded lower after its biggest weekly drop since end-June amidst concerns about higher U.S. tariffs, OPEC's September output hike decision and rising ceasefire hopes in Ukraine.

U.S. stocks rose on Friday, adding to the week's strong performance, amid easing concerns about tariffs and the economic outlook.

President Trump warned U.S. courts against striking down his tariff policy and said the duties will have a "huge positive impact" on the market.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite climbed 1 percent to reach a new record closing high for a second day after Apple committed to invest an additional $100 billion in U.S. manufacturing. The S&P 500 gained 0.8 percent and the Dow added half a percent.

European stocks ended mixed on Friday, with defense stocks underperforming following reports that U.S. and Russian officials are working on a deal to stop the war in Ukraine.

The pan European STOXX 600 edged up by 0.2 percent. The German DAX and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 both finished marginally lower while France's CAC 40 rose 0.4 percent.