Stocks Drift as Europe’s Woes Send Euro Lower: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) — Stocks drifted as investors showed little appetite for risk, with Europe’s political upheaval and fiscal strains the main focus and the euro falling to a 17-month low against the dollar.
S&P 500 futures fell 0.2%. The Nasdaq 100 was poised to open a fraction below the record high reached at the end of last week. In European stocks, upheaval was mainly visible in France as the CAC 40 fell 1%. The regional benchmark was little changed.
Currency markets showed greater unease as the euro dropped 0.6% to its lowest since May 2025. The bout of weakness came as Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called an early election, adding to concerns that were already weighing on French and other vulnerable sovereign debt. The dollar rose 0.2%.
Global bonds were mostly firmer, with French debt the main exception as its yield premium over German equivalents widened. Treasuries were stronger across the curve, led by the short end. Gold and Bitcoin rose modestly.
Investors remained on alert for signs of contagion in Europe’s government bond market after a selloff last week triggered memories of the region’s debt crisis 15 years ago. The widening in French spreads and decline in the euro may have further to run in the very near term, said Homin Lee, senior macro strategist at Lombard Odier.
“Bond and currency markets are clearly signaling investor discomfort about the rising instability of the French government and erosion in the country’s fiscal anchor ahead of the elections in 2027,” Lee said.
Elsewhere, a Brazilian exchange-traded fund in Japan rose after Flávio Bolsonaro unexpectedly finished ahead of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in the first round of the country’s presidential election. Futures on the real also gained.
Corporate Highlights:
Schneider Electric SE said it is acquiring US-based engineering software developer PTC Inc. for an implied enterprise value of $23.7 billion. SoftBank Group Corp. chief Masayoshi Son — one of AI’s fervent believers — said that even he’s worried about safety risks as machines quickly gain more abilities. Nippon Paint Holdings Co. is buying Akzo Nobel NV’s decorative paints business in Southeast Asia for $1.35 billion. Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
The Stoxx Europe 600 was little changed as of 8:24 a.m. London time S&P 500 futures fell 0.2% Nasdaq 100 futures were little changed Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were little changed The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 1.2% The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose 1% Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2% The euro fell 0.6% to $1.1184 The Japanese yen was little changed at 157.72 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 6.7112 per dollar The British pound fell 0.2% to $1.3212 Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin rose 0.3% to $86,119.85 Ether rose 0.5% to $2,719.43 Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined two basis points to 5.25% Germany’s 10-year yield declined four basis points to 3.42% Britain’s 10-year yield was little changed at 5.37% Commodities
Brent crude fell 0.6% to $101.64 a barrel Spot gold rose 0.3% to $4,151.83 an ounce This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Anand Krishnamoorthy.
©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
