European markets were lower on Monday as investors awaited key corporate earnings and monitored elevated Middle East tensions.

 

The pan-European Stoxx 600 traded down around 0.6% at 12:50 p.m. London time, with major bourses and almost all sectors in negative territory.

 

Household goods and technology stocks led the losses, both down over 1%, while oil and gas stocks rose 1.1%.

 

Looking at individual stocks, German software company SAP will report its highly anticipated third-quarter earnings on Monday evening. Investors are likely to scrutinize the results after a report from the Dutch semiconductor firm ASML last week triggered a rout in tech market stocks.

 

Regional markets had ended last week on a high note after the European Central Bank announced its third interest rate cut of the year. The ECB on Thursday lowered the deposit rate by another 25 basis points as inflation risks in the European Union are seen to be easing faster than anticipated.

 

Elsewhere, Asia-Pacific markets were mixed on Monday as traders assessed China's loan prime rate announcement, with focus also on Japan's general election at the end of the week.

 

Stateside, stock futures dipped after the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 notched their best weekly win streaks of 2024.

 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy didn't get what he wanted from U.S. President Joe Biden's "farewell tour" in Europe, according to the CEO of Ensah Advisory Partners, a strategic advisory firm.

 

"Biden wanted to reiterate the importance of NATO support for Ukraine, he wanted to reiterate the bilateral trade relationship that Germany enjoys with the United States but, ultimately, I think what President Zelenskyy was looking for was an approval by the quad to use long-range missiles in Russia," Syga Thomas, the CEO of Ensah Advisory Partners, told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Monday.

 

"And I think Biden ultimately decided not to go with that — at least not at the moment," Thomas said.

 

Biden met with U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron in Berlin last week to discuss support for Ukraine in its war with Russia.

 

Norway's biggest bank DNB said on Monday it had entered into an agreement to acquire Swedish investment bank and asset manager Carnegie for approximately 12 billion Swedish krona ($1.14 billion).

 

The deal to purchase Carnegie from private equity firm Altor and minority shareholders is designed to boost DNB's presence in the Nordic region, DNB said in a statement.

 

Swedish investment firm EQT on Monday said it has formed a consortium with U.S.-based Neuberger Berman Private Markets and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board to acquire international schools operator Nord Anglia Education for $14.5 billion.

 

Headquartered in the U.K., Nord Anglia operates over 80 schools in 33 countries and educates more than 85,000 students aged between 2 and 18, EQT said.

 

"EQT has had the privilege of partnering with Nord Anglia since 2008, and we've developed a deep connection with this exceptional business," Jack Hennessy, partner within the EQT private equity advisory team, said in a statement.

 

Oil prices traded higher on Monday morning, following a more than 7% drop last week, as investors monitored elevated Middle East tensions and concerns over potential supply disruptions.

 

International benchmark Brent crude futures with December expiry rose 1.5% to trade at $74.13 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures rose 1.7% to trade at $70.42.

 

Shares of JDE Peet's rose more than 16% during mid-morning deals, extending gains from earlier in the session.

 

It comes after investment holding company JAB said it would acquire Mondelez's 86 million shares in the Netherlands-based company.

 

Shares of Danish shipping group Moller-Maersk rose 3% on Monday morning.

 

Dutch coffee and tea group JDE Peet's rose to the top of the European benchmark on Monday morning.

 

Shares of JDE Peet's jumped 14% after the company announced the appointment of Rafael Oliveira as its chief executive officer and investment holding company JAB said it would acquire Mondelez's 86 million shares in the firm.

 

European markets opened slightly lower on Monday.

 

The fundamental backdrop is "quite good" for gold prices at the moment, according to one analyst, with the yellow metal thought to be on track to hit $3,000 per ounce over the coming months.

 

Spot gold prices traded 0.3% higher at $2,727.26 per ounce at around 7:50 a.m. London time, paring gains after hitting a fresh all-time high of $2,732.73 earlier in the session.

 

"There are a lot of things happening at the moment. I think the geopolitical uncertainty certainly helps. I think the rates is where it gets really interesting though," Michael Widmer, head of metals research at Bank of America global research, told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Monday.

 

"In the past, we always said it is the 10-year yield rate that matters most for the gold price but what we have actually seen is the complete decorrelation there. So, these days, lower 10-year yield rates are bullish gold, but higher 10-year yield rates do not have to be bearish gold," Widmer said.

 

"And that's partly because, I think there is increasing concern about government debt levels, particularly when it comes to the U.S. elections," he continued.

 

Asking prices for British homes rose only marginally in October as more properties came onto the market, according a survey on Monday that also suggested some buyers were waiting for clarity on tax changes in the new government's upcoming budget.

 

Asking prices rose by just 0.3% in October, well below their average for a 1.3% monthly increase for the month, property website Rightmove said.

 

The number of homes available for sale was 12% higher than the same time period last year, and was the highest per real estate agent since 2014.

 

Overall activity in the property market remained strong, with buyer demand rising.

 

China's stimulus measures need to tackle structural problems in its crisis-hit property sector to restore confidence in the world's second-largest economy, according to one strategist.

 

It comes as optimism over a raft of economic measures implemented by Beijing since late September appears to have faded in recent days.

 

"I think the fundamental point is, for all of the measures that have been taken, I think where the disappointment at least for an observer comes in is measures for the property market," Daniel Morris, chief market strategist at BNP Paribas Asset Management, told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Monday.

 

"The fundamental issue, or one of many fundamental issues, is that you can cut interest rates, but people aren't necessarily going to react if confidence isn't there [and] confidence isn't there because of weakness in the property market," Morris said.

 

European markets are expected to open in mixed territory Monday.

 

The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index is expected to open 17 points higher at 8,373, Germany's DAX down 12 points at 19,644, France's CAC up 1 point at 7,611 and Italy's FTSE MIB up 55 points at 35,087, according to data from IG.

 

Bitcoin surged to its highest level in three months after election polls showed higher odds of winning for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.

 

The cryptocurrency surged to a high of $69,487 on Monday, its highest level since July.

 

Wall Street analysts have raised their bets on three stocks ahead of their quarterly earnings reports over the past week.

 

One of the stocks, a Big Tech AI firm, has rallied 64% this year, with analysts predicting more momentum ahead.

 

As investors attempt to navigate volatile global markets, Morgan Stanley is reiterating its recommendation to buy dividend stocks.

 

"We recommend balanced and flexible strategy investors supplement their portfolio with dividend income, given high uncertainty into U.S. elections on November 5, and with a global monetary easing cycle likely to put a stronger focus on dividend yield," Morgan Stanley's analysts wrote in an Oct. 15 research note.