Markets mixed, could tumble 7-10 percent

Markets were mixed on Monday.

The S&P 500 rose less than 0.1 percent as investors assessed the impact of Hurricane Harvey after it caused floods in Texas and forced energy facilities to close.

The STOXX Europe 600 fell 0.5 percent as the euro hit its highest level against the US dollar in more than two years.

In Asia, the Shanghai Composite rose 0.9 percent but the Nikkei 225 was flat and markets elsewhere in the region were mixed.

Rob Carnell, head of Asia research at ING, said that there were “no clear policy clues from the Jackson Hole central bakers’ symposium” and this “left investors pondering”.

Indeed, Matt Maley, equity strategist at Miller Tabak, is pondering the possibility of the S&P 500 tumbling by 7 to 10 percent.

According to Maley, “the improvement in fundamentals is already behind us” and that looking forward, “a drop is more likely than a rise”.