Asia and European stocks rise, oil drops

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.2% in early trading

Stocks in Asia and oil prices dropped on Tuesday before a key meeting of central bankers and as traders evaluated promising diplomatic signals toward ending hostilities between Russia and Ukraine.

European equity futures posted modest gains after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said security guarantees for his nation will likely be worked out within 10 days after talks with US President Donald Trump and European leaders.

Nikkei share gauge set a new intraday record high before going down.

The US’ dollar held on to gains from the previous session as traders awaited policy hints from the country’s central bank ahead of its annual gathering in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

The Jackson Hole Symposium looms as one potential source of volatility, and going into the event, the markets remain cautious, Kyle Rodda, an analyst at Capital.com, wrote in a note to clients.

A dovish shift is being priced in, with further strength in equity markets – and weakness in the US dollar – reliant on the Fed meeting these expectations, the analyst added.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.2% in early trading.

Euro Stoxx 50 futures were 0.3% higher, German DAX futures added 0.2%, and FTSE futures gained 0.3%.

Nikkei stock index advanced at the open before slipping 0.5%, dragged lower by a 5% decline in SoftBank Group after the company announced a $2 billion stake in struggling US chipmaker Intel.

The US dollar was little changed at 147.78 yen. The euro traded steady at $1.1658, while the dollar index, which tracks the dollar against a basket of currencies, edged up to 98.171 after a 0.2% gain in the previous session.