In European Equity Markets stocks ended lower on Monday, weighed down by losses among commodities-related stocks and financials, though speculation about merger and acquisition activity offered some support with Vodafone among the leading gainers. The STOXX 600 closed 1.1 percent lower. Oil majors BP, Total and Royal Dutch Shell were down between 1.1 and 2.2 percent, while oil products storage company Vopak and refiner Neste , down 7 percent and 2 percent respectively, were both hit by a Goldman Sachs downgrade to sell. Vodafone rose 1.3 percent after the British phone group said it was in talks to merge its Indian unit with Idea in an all-share deal that could help counter fierce competition.

In Currency Markets the dollar fell more than 1 percent against the Japanese yen on Monday following a weekend of negative headlines relating to U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive orders on immigration. The dollar remained weak against the yen, falling by 1.25 percent to 113.67 yen, as investors sought the traditional security of the Japanese currency as the immigration curbs put the spotlight back on Trump’s protectionist bent and the risks it poses for the economy. The euro was last flat against the dollar at $1.0690 and sterling fell 0.25 percent. The Mexican peso rose to its highest level of 2017 on Monday. It gained 3.24 percent last week, its largest weekly percentage gain since February 2016.

In Commodities Markets oil prices fell on Monday as news of another weekly increase in U.S. drilling activity had oil forecasters concerned that production cuts from other producing nations may not reduce the global supply glut as much as many had hoped. Global benchmark Brent crude oil prices were down 39 cents at $55.13 a barrel, while U.S. crude futures traded down 53 cents at $52.64. Gasoline futures tumbled 1.6 percent to $1.5029 a gallon. Spot gold was up 0.1 percent at $1,192.55 an ounce. Spot silver gained 0.3 percent to $17.17 per ounce, platinum slid 1.1 percent to $972.49 and palladium ceded 0.7 percent to $730.5 per ounce.

In US Equity Markets main indexes were set for their worst day in more than three months on Monday, as President Donald Trump’s orders to curb travel and immigration from some countries sparked uncertainty. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.04 percent, at 19,885.51. The S&P 500 was down 1.1 percent, at 2,269.54 and the Nasdaq Composite was down 1.39 percent, at 5,582.12. Five of the nine declining sectors of the S&P 500, including financials and technology, were down more than 1 percent. The CBOE Volatility index rose 20 percent, its biggest rise since Sept. 9. Airline stocks including American Airlines, United Continental and JetBlue were down between 3.3 percent and 6.2 percent.

In Bond Markets U.S. Treasuries were little changed on Monday, ahead of policy meetings of the U.S. Federal Reserve on Tuesday and Wednesday and a heavy week of data that will culminate in Friday’s jobs report for January. Benchmark 10-year notes gained 1/32 in price to yield 2.48 percent, little changed from Friday. The yield on 10-year German government bonds were 2 basis points lower at 0.45 percent, having hit a high of 0.495 percent earlier in the session. Italy’s 10-year bond yield was up 8 basis points at 2.31 percent.

European Equity Upgrades/Downgrades
ABN AMRO (AABA NA) INITIATED OUTPERFORM AT CREDIT SUISSE
AGGREKO )AGK LN DOWNGRADED TO HOLD FROM BUY AT DEUTSCHE BANK
ASML (ASML NA) INITIATED BUY AT ABN AMRO
BARCLAYS (BARC LN) DOWNGRADED TO SELL FROM HOLD AT BERENBERG
BEIERSDORF (BEI GY) DOWNGRADED TO HOLD FROM BUY AT LIBERUM
BT (BT/A LN) DOWNGRADED TO ADD FROM BUY AT ALPHA VALUE
DIAGEO (DGE LN) DOWNGRADED TO SELL FROM HOLD AT LIBERUM
EASYJET (EZJ LN) DOWNGRADED TO HOLD FROM BUY AT CANTOR FITZGERALD
ENGIE (ENGI FP) DOWNGRADED TO SECTOR PERFORM FROM OUTPERFORM AT RBC
HENKEL (HEN GY) DOWNGRADED TO SELL FROM HOLD AT LIBERUM
LEG IMMOBILIEN (LEG GY) UPGRADED TO BUY FROM HOLD AT DEUTSCHE BANK
METRO (MEO GY) UPGRADED TO BUY FROM NEUTRAL AT ODDO
NESTLE (NESN VX) DOWNGRADED TO SELL FROM HOLD AT LIBERUM
RUBIS (RUI FP) ADDED TO CONVICTION BUY AT LIST AT GOLDMAN SACHS
SOFTWARE (SOW LN) UPGRADED TO BUY FROM NEUTRAL AT UBS
UNITED UTILITIES (UU/ LN) UPGRADED TO SECTOR PERFORM FROM UNDERPERFORM AT RBC