Investing.com - Here are the top five things you need to know today in financial markets:
1. Oil prices drop for 7th straight session
Oil prices fell for the seventh straight session on Monday, with Brent hitting the lowest level since December 2008, amid lingering concerns a global supply glut may stick around for longer than anticipated.
London-traded Brent shed 34 cents, or 0.89%, to $37.98 a barrel, while U.S. crude was last down 23 cents, or 0.66%, at $35.38 as of 5:40AM ET.
Oil futures have fallen every day since the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries failed to agree on output targets on December 4. Prices are down nearly 15% over the past seven sessions.
2. Dollar strengthens across the board ahead of Fed
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, rose 0.34% to 97.94, as investors turned their attention to this week’s Federal Reserve meeting.
The Fed is widely expected to raise interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade at the conclusion of its two day policy meeting on Wednesday. The central bank will also release its latest forecasts for economic growth and interest rates.
Fed Chair Janet Yellen is to hold what will be a closely-watched press conference following the release of the Fed's statement, as investors look for signals about the path of future rate hikes.
Many in the market anticipate the pace of increases to be gradual amid concerns over tepid growth overseas and divergent monetary policies between the U.S. and other nations.
3. China's yuan hits fresh 4-1/2-year low
China's central bank cut the yuan's reference rate to the weakest level since July 2011 on Monday, amid persistent worries over an economic slowdown and before an expected increase in U.S. interest rates later this month.
The move came after the People's Bank of China indicated Friday that it may ease its loose peg to the dollar and allow the yuan track a broad basket of currencies of China’s trading partners.
4. Global shares mixed with oil, Fed, yuan in focus
Global stock markets were mixed on Monday, with China's yuan hitting a fresh multi-year year low and oil's ongoing troubles adding to jitters ahead of an expected rate hike in U.S. later this week.
Asian stocks ended mostly lower, but the Chinese market bucked the trend to close higher, boosted by gains in shares of brokerages and banks.
European stock markets moved higher, despite weakness in Asian markets, while U.S. stock futures were up between 0.5% and 0.6%, suggesting a stronger open on Wall Street later in the day. U.S. markets closed sharply lower on Friday, with the S&P 500 ending its worst week since August, as plunging oil prices compounded investor nervousness on expectations for the first U.S. interest rate hike in nearly a decade.
5. Rand surges on South African finance minister appointment
South Africa's rand jumped as much as 6.4% on Monday, the most since October 2008, after President Jacob Zuma named the country’s second finance minister in four days. The move puts Pravin Gordhan, who held the post from 2009 to 2014, back into the top job.