TOKYO, March 10 — Wall Street futures sank and the safe-haven yen strengthened early on Monday as building deflationary pressures in China added to growth worries from a fading US economy and a simmering global trade war.
US S&P 500 e-mini stock futures pointed 0.7 per cent lower and Nasdaq futures sagged 0.9 per cent.
The yen gained about 0.4 per cent to 147.395 per US dollar.
Cryptocurrency bitcoin lost as much as 7.2 per cent from Friday to reach the lowest this month at US$80,085.42.
Data on Sunday showed China’s consumer price index fell at the sharpest pace in 13 months in February, while producer price deflation extended to a 30th straight month.
Friday’s US figures showed the labour market created fewer jobs than expected last month in the first monthly payrolls report capturing President Donald Trump’s policies. That extended a recent run of soft readings for the world’s biggest economy.
Meanwhile, Trump in a Fox News interview on Sunday declined to predict whether his tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China would result in a US recession.
“There’s no shortage of possible catalysts” for early weakness in markets, said Kyle Rodda, senior financial markets analyst at Capital.com.
“Most of all though, I think it’s Trump’s cavalier approach to economic policy that’s rattling sentiment,” Rodda said.
“Unlike during his first administration, where signs of an economic slowdown or market correction would see a pivot on policy, he is genuinely focused on significant, structural change to the economy – even if it comes at the expense of short-term growth.” — Reuters
