Markets in Europe are expected to open mostly lower on Tuesday as investors focus on the upcoming meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping.
The FTSE 100 is seen higher by 7 points at 7,299; the German DAX is set to start lower by 4 points at 12.267 and the CAC 4 is expected to start lower by 2 points at 5,086.
Investors look to be approaching matters with caution prior to the U.S.-China summit after this week after Trump said the meeting would be a "difficult one in that we can no longer have massive trade deficits." This has increased investor’s search for safe havens.
Political uncertainty is also playing a role in Europe. A U.K. parliamentary committee asked British Prime Minister Theresa May to prove that a “no (Brexit) deal is better than a bad deal” by presenting an economic assessment of leaving the EU without a deal. The same committee wants the government to publish its contingency plans in case it doesn’t strike a deal with the EU within the two-year deadline.
Meanwhile, the chief executive of Banco Popular, a Spanish lender, is stepping down. Pedro Larena announced on Monday that he was stepping down due to personal reasons. The bank had announced that internal audits revealed the need for some adjustment in previous accounts earlier in the day, though adjustments do not affect the statements in a “significant” way.