Investing.com – Wall Street took a breather on Monday with stocks trading mixed with little movement as market participants eyed political risk on both sides of the Atlantic.
At 11:38AM ET (16:38GMT), the Dow Jones inched up 4 points, or 0.02%, the S&P 500 dropped 3 points, or 0.13%, while the Nasdaq Composite was unchanged.
The Dow took a break after posting its best day of the year on Friday, while the tech index paused after marking a closing high in the prior session.
With no major economic reports stateside on Monday, the U.S. dollar bounced back on Monday, as market participants continued to ponder how the latest U.S. jobs report will affect the pace of Federal Reserve (Fed) interest rate hikes this year, buoyed in part by weakness registered in the euro due to concern over the future of the politics in the euro zone.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.38% at 100.07 by 11:39AM ET (16:39GMT). It fell to a more than two-month low of 99.19 last week.
EUR/USD in the meantime slumped 0.4%, hitting one-week lows, as concerns over the possibility of a Brexit or Trump-style shock result in France’s presidential election refocused investors’ attention back to the political risks facing the euro zone.
The move lower in the euro came after Marine Le Pen, head of the far-right National Front party, launched her presidential bid on Sunday with promises to exit the euro zone and protect France against globalization.
Polls have shown that conservative presidential candidate Francois Fillon lost his position as favorite to win the election to centrist Emmanuel Macron after his campaign became embroiled in a fake-job scandal.
Adding uncertainty to the region, a new poll showed that Germany’s social democrats party SPD overtook current Chancellor Angela Merkel’s CDU with 31% compared to 30%.
Meanwhile, investors also watch political developments stateside with U.S. President Donald Trump's administration on the back foot over its immigration and other policies.
On Sunday, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied the Justice Department's request to reinstate an executive order that barred entry into the U.S. citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries.
The political uncertainty heightened the appeal of gold as a safe haven asset, the precious metal last up 0.77% at $1,230.15 by 11:42AM ET (16:42GMT)
In a slow corporate news day, Hasbro (NASDAQ:HAS) led the advancers on the S&P 500 with gains of more than 14% as the toy maker reported an 11% jump in fourth quarter sales, allowing it beat consensus on both the top and bottom line.
On the downside, Laboratory Corporation of America (NYSE:LH) led the decliners on the global equities benchmark as East Coast Asset Management revealed in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that it had decreased its position by 6.4% in the third quarter.
Newell Brands Inc (NYSE:NWL) and Sysco (NYSE:SYY) followed close behind with the second and third largest losses after both firms reported disappointing earnings.
Meanwhile, oil prices underwent volatility and were modestly on Monday, reversing earlier gains as prospects of rising U.S. production weighed on the market.
News that the U.S. imposed fresh sanctions on some Iranian individuals and entities, days after the White House put Tehran "on notice" over a ballistic missile test, supported gains.
U.S. crude futures lost 0.98% to $53.30 by 11:43AM ET (16:43GMT), while Brent oil traded down 1.30% to $56.07.