BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - European markets are likely to see subdued start Monday amid weak Asian peers after the ouster of White House chief strategist Steve Bannon by U.S. President Donald Trump and the start of joint military drills by the U.S. and South Korea.
The investors will also be worried about Trump's ability to fulfill his economic agenda after the turmoil of recent weeks.
Bannon was ousted on Friday, becoming the latest high-ranking official to leave the Trump administration. As per media reports, his resignation was submitted earlier in August, but had to be pushed back following the violence in a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Further, the reports said the Trump administration has decided to push hard for tax reform.
The joint military drills between U.S. and South Korea will take place from August 21 to August 31. The move comes on the back of geopolitical tensions earlier this month between Trump and Pyongyang.
Asian markets were mixed in Monday trade reflecting political uncertainty in Washington and the U.S.-South Korea joint military drill.
In Japan, the benchmark Nikkei 225 Index was down 79.53 points or 0.41 percent. In Australia, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index was down 39.50 points or 0.7 percent, led by financial and utility stocks.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was trading up 130.53 points or 0.5 percent.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar was trading in the lower 109 yen-range on Monday. The Australian dollar was higher against the U.S. dollar.
In commodities, U.S. West Texas Intermediate or WTI oil was gaining 0.04 percent to $48.53 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Gold traded at $1,291. 00, down 0.05% as of 1:00 am ET.
On Wall Street, stocks closed modestly lower on Friday after news of Bannon's departure and investor concerns about Trump's ability to implement his agenda. The Dow fell 76.22 points or 0.4 percent to 21,674.51, the Nasdaq edged down 5.39 points or 0.1 percent to 6,216.53 and the S&P 500 dipped 4.46 points or 0.2 percent to 2,425.55.
The major European markets also moved to the downside on Friday. The German DAX Index fell by 38.27 points or 0.3 percent to 12,165.19, the French CAC 40 Index slid by 32.70 points or 0.6 percent to 5,114.15 and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index dropped by 63.89 points or 0.9 percent to 7,323.98.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX