European Shares Seen Mostly Higher As Trump's Tariffs Face Legal Hurdle

(RTTNews) - European stocks look set to open broadly higher on Monday, with trading volumes likely to remain thin due to the long Labour Day weekend in the United States.

A U.S. federal appeals court has delivered a stunning legal blow to President Donald Trump's trade policy, ruling that the majority of his sweeping tariffs were illegal and that the president overstepped his authority in imposing a series of tariffs -- including duties on China, Mexico, and Canada—under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

As Trump runs into legal challenges to his tariff policies, analysts say that the ruling could lead trading partners to drag their feet on negotiations with the White House.

For now, the duties remain in place until October 14, giving the Trump administration a window to appeal to the Supreme Court.

Criticizing the ruling on Truth Social, Trump warned that without the tariffs, the country would be "completely destroyed" and its military power "instantly obliterated."

In economic new, European PMIs for August, EU unemployment data for July, a speech by ECB President Christine Lagarde along with appearances by ECB Board members Piero Cipollone and Isabel Schnabel may garner attention later in the day.

French bond spreads are likely to stay elevated ahead of the September 8 confidence vote in parliament.

Prime Minister François Bayrou said in an interview on Sunday that the destiny of France was at stake in the confidence vote, which he called to resolve a budget standoff.

Asian markets were mostly lower as China's factory output data disappointed and investors fretted about slowing growth across the artificial intelligence sector, following Dell's disappointing profit forecast and Nvidia's dour China market expectations.

Additionally, the U.S. Commerce Department has revoked exemptions that allowed Intel, Samsung and SK Hynix to import advanced chipmaking tools for use at their Chinese fabs without prior approval.

The U.S. dollar index held steady above 97.50 ahead of the closely watched monthly jobs report along with reports on manufacturing and service sector activity due this week.

Following July's weak jobs data and recent comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell at Jackson Hole, U.S. money markets are now pricing an 84 percent chance of a 25 basis-point rate cut at the Federal Reserve meeting on Sept. 17.

Gold jumped about 1 percent to hover near $3,480 per ounce while Brent crude futures extended declines after notching their first monthly loss since April on concerns over a potential glut.

U.S. stocks ended lower on Friday as new data revealed rising prices remain a risk heading into September.

Data showed core PCE, a key inflation measure watched by the Federal Reserve which excludes the costs of food and energy, rose 2.9 percent in July, matching estimates but accelerating from the prior month to reach its highest level since February.

The S&P 500 declined 0.6 percent but notched its fourth winning month in a row. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite lost 1.2 percent and the Dow slipped 0.2 percent.

European stocks fell on Friday as investors watched rising clashes in Gaza and Ukraine as well as political uncertainty in France.

The pan European STOXX 600 gave up 0.6 percent. The German DAX dipped 0.6 percent, France's CAC 40 shed 0.8 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 eased 0.3 percent.