Global shares mostly retreat ahead of Fed statement
TOKYO (AP) - Global shares were mostly lower Tuesday in quiet trading as investors awaited signs of what might be ahead for U.S. interest rates.
France's CAC 40 lost 0.6% in early trading to 5,557.33, while Germany's DAX slipped 1.1% to 12,403.66. Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.4% to 7,523.11. U.S. shares were set for a retreat, with Dow futures dipping 0.4% to 26,685. S&P 500 futures lost nearly 0.5% to 2,965.20.
Shares fell on Wall Street overnight amid growing speculation an unexpectedly strong pickup in U.S. employment growth last month may lead the Federal Reserve to hold back on aggressively cutting its benchmark interest rate. Many investors still expect a cut of a quarter percentage point, but fewer are now expecting a half-point reduction.
The market rallied through much of June after the Fed signaled that it's prepared to cut interest rates to offset slowing global growth and the fallout from U.S. trade conflicts.
Investors will be listening closely for any hints on the central bank's interest rate policy on Wednesday and Thursday, when Fed Chair Jerome Powell delivers the Fed's semi-annual monetary report to Congress.
"After getting accustomed to trading the bad news is good news regime, investors are still struggling with the good news is the bad direction," Stephen Innes, managing partner at Vanguard Markets in Singapore, said in a commentary.
In Asian trading, Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 inched up 0.1% to finish at 21,565.15, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.1% to 6,665.70. South Korea's Kospi lost 0.6% to 2,052.03. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.8% to 28,116.28, while the Shanghai Composite lost 0.2% to 2,928.23.
ENERGY: Benchmark crude oil gained 19 cents to $57.85 a barrel. It rose 15 cents to $57.66 a barrel Monday. Brent crude oil, the international standard, climbed 35 cents to $64.46 a barrel.
CURRENCIES: The dollar rose to 108.92 Japanese yen from 108.40 yen Monday. The euro weakened to $1.1199 from $1.1230.
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AP Business Writer Alex Veiga contributed to this report.