U.S. stock futures and the dollar came under pressure on Monday as a shutdown of the U.S. government seemed ever more likely, while the euro had political troubles of its own as the Italian government teetered on the edge of collapse.
Hardly helping was a surprise downward revision to activity in China's factory sector. While the final HSBC Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) did edge up to 50.2 in September, that was well down on the preliminary reading of 51.2.
The end result was a shift out of equities and toward safe havens including the yen, Swiss franc and some sovereign debt. U.S. Treasuries also benefited from a view that the economic damage done by a government closure would be yet another reason for the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates low for longer.
Source: Reuters
