(Bloomberg) — The dollar weakened and US equity-index futures dropped, threatening to end the S&P 500’s longest winning streak in two decades, as uncertainty about US trade policy hung over markets. Crude oil slumped after OPEC+ announced another supply increase.
A gauge of the greenback declined for a second day and contracts for the S&P 500 retreated 0.8% after President Donald Trump said he had no plans to talk to his Chinese counterpart this week, though he signaled trade deals with other unspecified partners could come soon.
Brent crude futures plunged as much as 4.6%. Gold advanced. With UK and some Asian markets closed for a holiday, there was no cash trading in Treasuries.
Financial markets have steadied in the past two weeks as Trump dialed back his tariffs amid signs that trade talks are progressing, with the S&P 500 rallying for two straight weeks and notching nine straight days of gains. Still, a trade deal with China would be a prerequisite for the US benchmark to sustain the advance, according to strategists at Morgan Stanley led by Michael Wilson.
“Recent cyclical gains in equities don’t change the structural ‘Sell America’ theme,” said Charu Chanana, the chief investment strategist at Saxo Markets in Singapore. “Trade-deal optimism is giving way to the reality of complex, slow-moving negotiations.”
European stocks were steady in subdued trading. Europe’s benchmark Stoxx 600 index has posted nine days of gains through Friday, the longest streak in a year, buoyed by earnings significantly ahead of expectations.
Among individual movers in Europe, Austrian lender Erste Group Bank AG climbed as much as 7% after agreeing to buy much of Banco Santander SA’s operations in Poland for about €7 billion ($7.9 billion). Santander Bank Polska SA fell more than 5%.
With first-quarter earnings season drawing to a close, focus shifts to the Federal Reserve’s policy decision on Wednesday. The central bank is expected to keep interest rates on hold despite pressure from Trump and concerns about a tariff-induced economic slowdown.
“It will take a couple of months for enough hard data evidence to accumulate to make the case for a cut,” Goldman Sachs Group Inc. economists including Jan Hatzius and David Mericle wrote in a note Sunday. They are are forecasting three consecutive 25 basis point rate cuts in July, September, and October.
Meanwhile, the OPEC+ major production increase added to supply at a time when demand is challenged by the drag from the trade war. The alliance — led by Saudi Arabia and Russia — has been reversing prolonged output curbs that were meant to support prices, but which cost it market share to rival drillers.
“Risk has skewed rapidly to the downside,” Brian Leisen, a commodity strategist at RBC Capital Markets, wrote in a note to clients.
In corporate news, Shell Plc is working with advisers to evaluate a potential acquisition of BP Plc, though it’s waiting for further stock and oil price declines before deciding whether to pursue a bid, according to people familiar with the matter. Shell’s shares dropped 1.9%.
Warren Buffett, who built Berkshire Hathaway Inc. into a business valued at more than $1.16 trillion and himself into a celebrity billionaire renowned for his investing acumen, will step down at year-end after six decades atop the conglomerate.
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
- The Stoxx Europe 600 was little changed as of 10:20 a.m. London time
- S&P 500 futures fell 0.8%
- Nasdaq 100 futures fell 1%
- Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.7%
- The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.6%
- The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose 0.9%
Currencies
- The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.3%
- The euro rose 0.4% to $1.1337
- The Japanese yen rose 0.7% to 143.91 per dollar
- The offshore yuan rose 0.1% to 7.2027 per dollar
- The British pound rose 0.2% to $1.3294
Cryptocurrencies
- Bitcoin fell 1.2% to $94,539.5
- Ether fell 0.6% to $1,826.12
Bonds
- Germany’s 10-year yield declined two basis points to 2.52%
Commodities
- Brent crude fell 2.1% to $59.98 a barrel
- Spot gold rose 1.6% to $3,293.04 an ounce
This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Joanna Ossinger and Anand Krishnamoorthy.
©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
