US stocks inch lower, crude rises, South Korea's won tumbles

By Stephen Culp

NEW YORK (Reuters) -U.S. stocks got off to a muted start on Tuesday, hovering near Monday's record closing highs as tight labor market data and brewing geopolitical turmoil helped dampen investor risk appetite.

The three major U.S. stock indexes edged lower with the blue-chip Dow down the most.

South Korea's won tumbled to a two-year low against the dollar following a declaration of martial law, and crude prices gained amid supply concerns related to OPEC+ output cuts and simmering tensions in the Middle East.

"If you're an investor right now, you're not looking to sell; you don't want to necessarily take trips off the table," said Oliver Pursche, senior vice president at Wealthspire Advisors in New York. "But man, it's it. It's tough to have high conviction at these valuations and given some of the geopolitical uncertainties."

The Labor Department released its closely monitored Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), which showed job openings on the rise and layoffs on the wane, supporting the notion that the labor market continues its gradual cool-down.

Elsewhere, aside from the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, the French government is on the verge of collapse following a vote of no confidence from far-right and left parties.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law to in what he said was an effort to block efforts of opposition parties to hijack the parliamentary process.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 120.42 points, or 0.27%, to 44,661.58; the S&P 500 fell 10.28 points, or 0.17%, to 6,036.57; and the Nasdaq Composite fell 11.78 points, or 0.07%, to 19,392.17.

Bank stocks boosted European shares to a near one-month high but those gains were pared as political turmoil in France kept investors on edge.

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe rose 1.66 points, or 0.19%, to 866.30.

The STOXX 600 index rose 0.35%, while Europe's broad FTSEurofirst 300 index rose 7.99 points, or 0.39%

Emerging market stocks rose 7.82 points, or 0.72%, to 1,094.21.

The dollar lost ground against a basket of world currencies as financial markets cemented expectations that the Federal Reserve will make another interest rate cut at this month's policy meeting.

But its losses were held in check by France's unfolding political crisis, and lingering tariff threats from President-elect Donald Trump.

China's onshore yuan touched its weakest level since the 2008 financial crisis in the face of tariff threats.

The dollar index , which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, fell 0.09% to 106.27, with the euro up 0.15% at $1.0513.

The Korean won weakened 1.94% against the dollar to 1,432.14 per dollar.

Bitcoin edged higher, prolonging its flirtation with the elusive and closely watched $100,000 mark.

Bitcoin gained 0.41% to $95,795.00. Ethereum declined 1.12% to $3,575.92.

Yields on 10-year Treasuries edged higher in the wake of the JOLTS report as investors cement their expectations for a 25 basis point rate cut at the conclusion of the Fed's Dec. 17-18 policy meeting.

The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes rose 1.1 basis points to 4.205%, from 4.194% late on Monday.

The 30-year bond yield rose 1.9 basis points to 4.3766% from 4.358% late on Monday.

Crude oil prices gained ground ahead of an expected decision by OPEC+ to approve continued output cuts.

Oil's advance was also supported by a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon.

U.S. crude rose 2.32% to $69.68 a barrel and Brent rose to $73.38 per barrel, up 2.16% on the day.



Gold held firm amid firming expectations for a December rate cut from the Federal Reserve.

Spot gold rose 0.03% to $2,639.68 an ounce. U.S. gold futures rose 0.04% to $2,636.00 an ounce.

Source: Investing.com