Global stock markets struggled on Monday as the U.S. government shutdown extended into its third day after a scheduled vote for 1 a.m. EST was cancelled. The shutdown began on Saturday after a government funding bill was shot down in the Senate, a move which immediately began mudslinging between the Republicans and the Democrats, escalating the tensions and placing a compromise just out of arm’s reach. The impasse stems from the Democrats’ discontent over the Republicans’ immigration plan and their refusal to agree on a spending plan before the immigration issues are addressed. Still, while the U.S. government shutdown has already had slight impacts on the global markets and is sure to garner much more attention this week, analysts are optimistic that these setbacks will be short-lived and will reverse once the shutdown ends, as has been the trend after past government shutdowns.
Australia’s ASX 200 index was down 0.23 percent as of 3:03 p.m. HK/SIN. South Korea’s Kopsi was also in negative territory, down 0.72 percent. Still, Japan’s Nikkei 225 managed to eke out some gains, up 0.03 in the mid-afternoon. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was up 0.32 percent.
Currency Movements
The U.S. dollar was trading in range against most of its primary trading partners, unchanged against the euro and a modest 0.10 percent higher against the yen, to 110.87. The greenback was down 0.07 percent against the Canadian dollar to $1.2477, and was down 0.05 percent against the Swiss franc as well. As reported by MarketWatch, the dollar index was at 90.65 .DXY, up slightly from a three-year low of 90.104 touched on Wednesday.