Good morning! Here’s what you need to know in markets on Monday.
1. Oil prices rose as traders expected top exporter Saudi Arabia to push OPEC to cut supply towards the end of the year. Asian shares inched cautiously higher amid conflicting signals on the chance of a truce in the Sino-U.S. trade dispute, while a new-found air of concern on the global outlook at the Federal Reserve undermined the dollar. Brent crude rallied 1 percent to $67.43 a barrel in early Monday trading.
2. US President Donald Trump said there is no reason to listen to audio of the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. A question is still hanging over Trump now that the CIA reportedly believes Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince personally ordered the killing of journalist Khashoggi last month.
3. Opponents of British Prime Minister Theresa May are six letters short of the threshold to trigger a no confidence vote, The Sun newspaper reported. May said a conservative contest now would derail Brexit. May delivered a hard message to the rebels in her party: A leadership change could end Brexit itself.
4. Some 44% of German firms expect a further escalation of trade tensions between Europe and the United States, which is likely to continue to dampen new investments, the RND newspaper chain reported, citing a survey by the IW economic institute.
5. French President Emmanuel Macron called on Sunday for Germany and France to dig deeper as allies in their bid to spearhead a more united Europe, including by overcoming lingering skepticism on issues such as a euro zone budget.
6. Iran is still hopeful that Europe can save a 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and six major powers despite the withdrawal of the United States, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said on Monday.
7. An under-pressure Mark Zuckerberg reportedly told Facebook execs that the company he built is "at war." The company CEO promised to be more "hands on," after what he called recent "bull---" media coverage.
8. China approved a $6 billion airport expansion in its autonomous Xinjiang territory. The area is considered by China to be a key node for the country's massive Belt and Road initiative, though the region has been wrought with controversy over its detention of Uighur Muslims.
9. Former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg donated $1.8 billion of his massive fortune to his alma mater Johns Hopkins. This is the largest donation to any US educational institution in history.
10. Mark Zuckerberg reportedly tried to pin the blame for the Cambridge Analytica scandal on his COO Sheryl Sandberg. Following the incident, Sandberg reportedly told friends that she wondered if she should be worried about her job.
