European markets seen slightly lower as weak China data caps trade gains

European markets were expected to open slightly lower Monday with weak data out of China looking set to slow Friday’s surge on the back of a partial trade accord between Washington and Beijing.

The FTSE 100 was seen around 4 points lower at 7,243, the DAX was set to slip around 44 points to 12,468 and France’s CAC 40 was expected to fall around 19 points to 5,646, according to IG data.

The U.S. agreed to postpone an increase in tariffs from 25 percent to 30 percent on at least $250 billion of Chinese goods, which had been scheduled for Tuesday.

President Donald Trump said that the first phase of a trade deal will be drawn up within the next three weeks, and will see China purchasing between $40 billion and $50 billion of U.S. agricultural products.

Markets in Asia Pacific rose on Monday following the news, led by Chinese stocks with all three mainland indexes adding more than 1 percent.

However, customs data showed that China’s import and export figures were worse than expected in September, with exports falling 3.2 percent on the year in U.S. dollar terms, while imports declined 8.5 percent, according to Reuters.

Back in Europe, investors will be monitoring a big week for Brexit. The Queen’s Speech, Britain’s official state opening of Parliament, is scheduled for noon London time on Monday and will set out the U.K. government’s plans under Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

The BBC reported Monday that the U.K. and the European Union are still divided on customs arrangements as they look to hammer out a deal for Britain’s departure before the October 31 deadline.

The Financial Times reported that hundreds of German companies have appealed for support from EU lawmakers as they struggle to mitigate the impacts of Brexit, the U.S.-China trade war and the broader global slowdown.

Source: CNBC