- A strong earnings season wound down in Europe, while markets around the world reacted to falling commodity prices.
- Investors are awaiting key U.S. inflation data scheduled for release this week.
LONDON — European stocks closed slightly higher on Monday, as investors kept an eye on the latest Covid-19 developments and falling commodity prices.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 provisionally ended up 0.2%, with healthcare stocks adding 1% to lead gains while autos sank 0.6%.
The muted start to the trading week in Europe echoed sentiment in Asia-Pacific, where markets were mixed on Monday.
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Data out of China Monday showed the country's export growth unexpectedly slowed in July while imports also lost momentum.
Meanwhile, U.S. stocks were lower Monday, despite major indexes ending the last trading week higher following a stronger-than-expected jobs report.
The Labor Department jobs report Friday showed the U.S. economy added 943,000 jobs in July. Economists expected 845,000 new jobs last month, according to Dow Jones estimates. The unemployment rate dropped to 5.4%, below the expectation of 5.7%.
Money Report
Investors are awaiting key U.S. inflation data scheduled for release this week. The consumer price index and the producer price index are scheduled to come out Wednesday and Thursday, respectively.
In addition, several Fed officials are scheduled for speaking appearances in the week ahead, with investors listening with a close ear for insights into the central bank's tapering decision making.
In terms of individual share price movement, Britain's Deliveroo surged 4.5% on Monday after disclosing that German peer Delivery Hero had taken a 5.09% stake in the company.
At the bottom of the Stoxx 600, British financial services company Hargreaves Lansdown plunged more than 11% after its earnings report.
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- CNBC's Ryan Browne, Hannah Miao and Eustance Huang contributed to this market report.
