Asian stock markets showed mixed trends on Monday, while oil prices fell about $1.50 a barrel after US President Donald Trump’s plan to buy diesel from Russia drew criticism from lawmakers.
US stock futures rose more than 0.3% after Wall Street ended a record-setting week with gains. Investors are now looking ahead to US inflation and retail sales data, along with quarterly earnings reports from major banks.
In Asian trading, South Korea’s Kospi fell 3.1% to 6,416.17, while markets in Tokyo remained closed for a holiday.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index edged up 0.2% to 24,253.70, while the Shanghai Composite slipped 0.1% to 3,809.08.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 jumped 0.9% to 8,790.70. Taiwan’s Taiex lost 0.2%, while India’s Sensex rose 0.1%.
On Friday, the S&P 500 gained 0.6%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.8% and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.6%.
Oil prices have fluctuated amid uncertainty over when the war with Iran will allow the global energy market to return to normal.
Trump announced on social media Friday that he had reached a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin during a phone call to purchase Russian diesel, aiming to bring down rising fuel prices ahead of the November 3 US midterm elections.
Trump said Russia would immediately supply more than 300,000 tonnes of diesel to the US and global markets, followed by another 500,000 tonnes in November and 1 million tonnes “immediately thereafter”. Russia would deliver a further 3 million tonnes “within a short period of time”, he added.
The plan conflicts with US efforts to limit Russia’s oil and gas revenues, which help fund its war against Ukraine.
The announcement came weeks after Congress passed legislation directing Trump to impose substantial tariffs on major importers of Russian oil or natural gas. The law includes an exception for countries importing less than 15% of Russia’s natural gas exports that have taken significant steps to reduce those imports.
A bipartisan group of six US senators on Sunday urged the administration to “immediately reverse course” on the plan.
Brent crude, the international benchmark, fell 1.4% to $103.31 a barrel early Monday, while US benchmark crude dropped 1.7% to $90.31.
Inflation and corporate earnings in focus
Stock prices have continued to rise on expectations of strong corporate earnings, even as Americans face growing pressure from high inflation.
A preliminary report from the University of Michigan released Friday showed that US consumers expect inflation to reach 4.7% over the next year, up from 4.6% a month earlier and 3.4% in February, before the war with Iran began.
Consumer sentiment has fallen sharply among lower-income Americans and those with smaller stock investments, who are less able to cope with rising living costs.
Companies face pressure to deliver strong profit growth after their share prices approached record highs despite pressure from elevated bond yields.
Major banks, including Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo, are scheduled to report their latest quarterly earnings on Tuesday.
In currency trading early Monday, the US dollar rose slightly to 158.27 Japanese yen from 158.23 yen, while the euro climbed to $1.1211 from $1.1191.