Stocks in Malaysia Hit 13-month High

The FTSE MIB rose 0.8% to around 43,860 in early trading on Monday, reaching its highest level in a month.

Shares of Juventus surged nearly 10% after the Agnelli family’s holding company Exor rejected a takeover proposal from crypto group Tether over the weekend.

Early gainers included Prysmian (+1.9%), Unipol Gruppo (+1.8%), Buzzi Unicem (+2.7%), and BPER Banca (+1.6%).

Meanwhile, Leonardo shares fell 1.2% as investors awaited the outcome of Ukraine peace talks being held in Berlin.

On the global front, US data on employment and inflation will be closely watched as traders assess the timing and scope of potential interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.

The DAX edged higher on Monday, rising 0.3% to surpass 24,260, recovering from Friday’s decline, in line with its European peers.

Investors prepared for a pivotal week marked by central bank policy announcements.

The ECB is widely expected to keep borrowing costs unchanged while upgrading its GDP growth forecasts.

Meanwhile, the spotlight remains on geopolitics amid US-Ukraine negotiations, following President Zelenskiy’s indication that Ukraine may abandon its NATO membership goal.

CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stocks fell on Monday as investors fretted over tech valuations and digested disappointing economic data from China.

Gold soared nearly 1 percent to a seven-week high in Asian trade as the U.S. dollar struggled to regain traction ahead of the release of delayed U.S. jobs and inflation data as well as a slew of central bank decisions due this week.

Oil ticked higher as Venezuelan supply disruptions outweighed concerns over a massive oversupply in the new year.

Chinese shares ended lower as bondholders of distressed developer China Vanke rejected a proposal to extend a bond payment and a slew of Chinese economic data underscored structural weaknesses.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite index dipped 0.55 percent to 3,867.92 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 1.34 percent to 25,628.88.

Official data showed China's industrial production grew 4.8 percent year-on-year in November, missing forecasts for an increase of 5.0 percent and down from 4.9 percent in October.

Retail sales rose an annual 1.3 percent, well shy of forecasts for a gain of 3.0 percent and down from 2.9 percent in the previous month.

Fixed asset investment slumped 2.6 percent on year, missing forecasts for a loss of 2.4 percent after slumping 1.7 percent a month earlier. The jobless rate came in at 5.1 percent, unchanged and as expected.

Japanese market tumbled as tech shares tracked their U.S. peers lower on concerns over stretched valuations. The Nikkei average slumped 1.31 percent to 50,168.11 while the broader Topix index settled 0.22 percent higher at 3,431.47.

Among the prominent decliners, Advantest plunged 6.4 percent, SoftBank Group lost 6 percent and Tokyo Electron declined 1.1 percent.

Banks Mitsubishi UFJ Financial and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial both rose over 2 percent as an upbeat Tankan survey reinforced view that the Bank of Japan will raise interest rates on Friday.

Seoul stocks slumped as AI bubble woes resurfaced. The Kospi average tumbled 1.84 percent to 4,090.59. Samsung Electronics lost 3.8 percent and SK Hynix gave up 3 percent following disappointing AI margins outlook from Broadcom and Oracle.

Korea Zinc shares surged 4.9 percent ahead of a board meet to discuss plans for a major new smelter project in the United States.

Australian markets ended notably lower as miners pulled back from record highs reached in the previous session. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.72 percent to 8,635 while the broader All Ordinaries index closed 0.66 percent lower at 8,923.80.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index finished marginally higher at 13,408.14 despite a measure of the country's services sector sinking deeper into contraction in November.

U.S. stocks ended deep in the red on Friday as investors continued to book profits from high-flying names linked to the artificial intelligence trade on valuation concerns.

Higher Treasury yields also dented sentiment after Chicago Federal Reserve President Austan Goolsbee said he is uneasy about 'too heavily front-loading rate cuts and just assuming that inflation will be transitory.'

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite plunged 1.7 percent amid a broader rotation from tech to value names. The S&P 500 lost 1.1 percent and the Dow dipped half a percent.

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European stocks opened the final full trading week of the year on a positive note, with both the STOXX 50 and the STOXX 600 up 0.3%, rebounding after Friday’s tech-led sell-off.

Investors are bracing for a busy week of central bank meetings.

The ECB is widely expected to keep borrowing costs unchanged while upgrading its GDP growth forecasts.

The Bank of England, Sweden’s Riksbank and Norway’s Norges Bank are also set to deliver monetary policy decisions.

Meanwhile, geopolitical developments remain in focus, with markets monitoring peace talks on Ukraine.

Discussions between the US delegation and President Zelenskyy are resuming in Berlin.

Fresenius gained 2.2%, Banco Santander rose 1.5%, and Schneider Electric advanced 1.3%, leading the market higher.

In contrast, Argenx plunged 9%, while Sanofi fell more than 5% after its multiple sclerosis drug, tolebrutinib, failed to meet the primary endpoint in a clinical trial.

In London, the FTSE 100 Index is gaining 52 points or 0.54 percent on Monday.

Leading the gains are Frasers Group (6.35%), Burberry (2.99%) and Endeavour (2.71%).

Top losers are Associated British Foods (-1.68%), Hikma Pharmaceutical (-1.52%) and BAE Systems (-1.44%).

In Frankfurt, the DAX Index is picking up 59 points or 0.24 percent on Monday.

Gains are led by Fresenius (2.52%), Siemens Energy (1.35%) and HeidelbergCement (1.17%).

Biggest losers are Daimler Truck Holding AG (-1.38%), Rheinmetall (-1.22%) and Vonovia (-1.16%).