(Bloomberg) -- U.S. equities edged lower and the dollar strengthened after data showing broad gains in retail sales suggested the economy is healthy enough to go without an interest-rate cut. Oil fluctuated after Thursday’s surge on the heels of suspected tanker attacks.
Tech shares paced declines in the S&P 500 Index after Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) Inc. cut its annual sales forecast, citing trade war concerns. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell the most in two weeks after a mixed session in Asia. Gold climbed above $1,350 an ounce, a level last seen in April 2018. Treasury yields pared declines after May’s retail sales data was seen as undermining the case for a dovish turn by the Federal Reserve.
With heightened U.S.-China trade tensions threatening to weaken already fragile global economic growth and geopolitical concerns ratcheting up in the Middle East, equity investors had been banking on more support from central banks. The outlook for the Fed was in focus, with BMO strategists saying the odds of a cut next week are higher than many expect, while DoubleLine Capital’s Jeffrey Gundlach said he doesn’t think policy makers will cut interest rates this month.
“Investors face a steepening wall of worry as geopolitical risk now joins lingering trade and Fed policy uncertainty as sources of anxiety,” said Alec Young, the managing director of global markets research at FTSE Russell.
Elsewhere, Chinese shares fell while Japan’s Topix index rose. The yuan was steady after Chinese industrial production in May missed estimates. Oil headed for a weekly drop as investors continued to monitor developments in the Middle East, with the U.S. blaming Iran for Thursday’s suspected tanker attacks.
These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
- The S&P 500 Index decreased 0.2% as of 10:55 a.m. New York time.
- The Stoxx Europe 600 Index decreased 0.3%.
- The MSCI Emerging Market Index fell 0.6% to the lowest in a week.
- The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dipped 0.2%.
Currencies
- The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index gained 0.3%.
- The euro declined 0.3% to $1.1243, the weakest in more than a week.
- The British pound decreased 0.4% to $1.2621.
- The Japanese yen was little changed at 108.34 per dollar.
Bonds
- The yield on 10-year Treasuries dipped one basis point to 2.08%.
- Britain’s 10-year yield rose one basis point to 0.84%.
- Germany’s 10-year yield fell two basis points to -0.26%.
Commodities
- Gold increased 0.6% to $1,350.26 an ounce.
- West Texas Intermediate crude rose 1% to $52.78 a barrel.