investingLive European markets wrap: A calmer mood even as US-Iran tensions simmer

Headlines: USD/JPY nudges back up towards 158.00 mark as dollar holds firmer on the week Gold continues to consolidate amid prolonged US-Iran stalemate, hawkish Fed risk ECB's Villeroy: We don't have enough information on core inflation yet ECB's Muller: The ECB will need a fast resolution on Hormuz to hold in June ECB's Rehn: Monetary policy should not be based on oil prices alone French headline inflation surges in April as energy prices accelerate Germany wholesale prices push higher in April as Middle East conflict reverberates Eurozone Q1 GDP second estimate +0.1% vs +0.1% q/q prelim Markets: WTI crude down 0.4% to $101.75, keeps above the $100 mark European stocks more mixed; DAX up 0.8%, CAC 40 down 0.3% US futures steady with S&P 500 futures up 0.2% USD and CAD lead, NZD lags on the day US 10-year yields flat at 4.47% Gold down 0.2% to $4,703 while silver is up 1% to $87.38 It was a quieter session as markets kept the calm despite the US-Iran conflict continuing to play out. There's no fresh progress as the focus and attention now shifts towards the east, with US president Trump making his trip to China. The latest from the Chinese state media is that Trump has arrived in Beijing. He will be meeting with China president Xi Jinping over the next two days, so expect key headlines to flow during the Asia and European sessions if there will be anything. But for today, there wasn't much happening in markets as tensions continue to simmer. Oil prices are steadier and not doing much with WTI crude keeping above the $100 mark. The commodity is down 0.4% to $101.75 but not keeping elevated in holding above triple digits for now. Elsewhere, the mood in the equities market is also steadier with European indices holding more mixed but with some slight gains at the balance. The DAX is up 0.8% on the day while CAC 40 is down 0.3%. As for US futures, the mood music is leaning towards being cautiously optimistic after the late rebound yesterday. S&P 500 futures are up 0.2% with Nasdaq futures up 0.6% on the day as we see a reversal back into tech shares. In other markets, the dollar is sitting a little higher with EUR/USD down 0.2% to 1.1715 while USD/JPY continues to flirt at one-week highs and keeping near levels where Tokyo officials last decided to intervene last week. The latter is seen around 157.60-70 levels on the day. Besides that, the bond market is not doing much with Treasury yields mostly flattish across the curve. And in the precious metals space, we are seeing a more mixed picture with gold down 0.2% to $4,703 while silver is up 1% to $87.38. This article was written by Justin Low at investinglive.com.