Global stock markets were mostly lower on September 3 amid revived jitters over U.S.-Chinese trade tension and wrangling by British lawmakers over whether to try to postpone leaving the European Union. Benchmarks in London, Frankfurt and Hong Kong declined. Shanghai closed lower. Tokyo was little changed.

Read: Trade War: Asian Stocks Mixed After US, China Impose New Tariff Hikes

The tariff hikes

Investor optimism about U.S.-Chinese talks this month aimed at ending a tariff war was shaken by a Bloomberg News report that trade envoys were struggling to agree on a schedule. The report is a reminder “of the tremendous gulf between the U.S. and China in reconciling their differences over trade, leaving the global economy hanging in the balance,” Han Tan of FXTM said in a report. Markets had reacted less strongly to last weekend’s U.S. and Chinese tariff hikes in a fight over trade and technology.
President Donald Trump has sounded optimistic about negotiations over China’s trade surplus and complaints Beijing steals or pressures companies to hand over technology. But there is no indication either side is willing to break a deadlock in talks by offering concessions. On Sunday, the United States started charging a 15% tariff on about $112 billion of Chinese products. China responded by charging tariffs of 10% and 5% on a list of American goods.

Read: Surveys Show China Manufacturing Demand Weak Amid Trade War With US

U.S.-China economy is hit

With tariff hikes, Benchmark U.S. crude lost 74 cents to $54.36 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $1.61 on Monday to close at $55.10. Brent crude, used to price international oils, retreated 59 cents to $58.07 per barrel in London. It sank 69 cents the previous session to $58.66. The dollar retreated to 106.06 yen from Monday’s 106.22 yen. The euro declined to $1.0948 from $1.0969.

Read: In Escalating Trade War With China, US Consumers May See Higher Prices

Britain's economic state of affairs post-Brexit and trade war

Britain’s Parliament was due to reconvene after Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s office said he would call an early election if his opponents pass legislation that would block his plans to leave the EU by an Oct. 31 deadline. Opposition parties are challenging Johnson’s plan to withdraw from the European market of 500 million people even if the two sides haven’t agreed on terms for future trade and travel. In early trading, London’s FTSE 100 was off 4 points at 7,278.30 and Frankfurt’s DAX lost 0.4% to 11,908.80. France’s CAC 40 retreated 0.4% to 5,469.29. On Monday, the FTSE 100 rose 1.1% and the CAC 40 added 0.2%. The DAX was 0.1% higher.

Read: Trump Hits Back At China With More Tariffs Amid Escalating Trade War

Stocks low in the rest of the world  

On Wall Street, the future for the benchmark Standard & Poor’s 500 index was off 0.6% with trading due to resume after a three-day weekend. That for the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.7%. In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index closed up 0.2% at 2,930.15 and Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 was 5 points higher at 20,625.16. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.4% to 25,527.85. Seoul’s Kospi shed 0.2% to 1,965.69 and Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 lost 1.5% to 6,573.40. India’s Sensex fell 1.6% to 36,731.51. Similarly, New Zealand and Singapore advanced while Taiwan, Indonesia, and the Philippines retreated. Similarly, the Reserve Bank of Australia held its benchmark interest rate steady at 1% at its September board meeting. A bank statement cited risks to global growth from the U.S.-Chinese tariff war and uncertainty over Australian consumer spending.

Read: China Doing Very Poorly As A Result Of Trade War: Donald Trump