A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from

Wayne Cole.

Asian markets have been cautiously gauging the fallout from

the success of right-wing parties in the European Union and what

it might mean for the cohesion of the bloc.

EUROSTOXX 50 futures did edge up 0.2%, steadying

after Monday's retreat, while FTSE futures were all but

flat. The euro also held at $1.0766 and above the one-month low

of $1.0733.

French President Emmanuel Macron was reportedly trying to

line up left-wing and centrist parties against the right, but so

far with little success.

The first opinion poll suggested the far-right National

Rally party could win the snap election, but fall short of an

absolute majority.

Markets are mixed across Asia, with Japan, South Korea and

Taiwan all up, while China slipped as it caught up with

post-payrolls pressure after a holiday on Monday.

Beijing also set the yuan at a seven-month low to reflect

gains for the U.S. dollar as investors trim wagers on Federal

Reserve rate cuts. The Fed meets on Wednesday and many analysts

now assume its dot plot projection will no longer show three

rate cuts for this year but two, or even just a single move.

Then again, fewer cuts this year might mean the easing is

back loaded into 2025 and those plots shift to four cuts from

three.

Note the Bank of Japan holds its meeting on Friday amid much

talk it will taper monthly bond buying by a trillion yen to 5

trillion, as a step toward a hike of 10 basis points in July.

Elsewhere, markets gave a muted reaction to Apple's ( AAPL )

long-awaited AI strategy, which integrates "Apple Intelligence"

technology across a suite of apps. The iPhone maker's shares

were down 0.3% in after hours trade.

Optimists noted the software requires at least an iPhone 15

Pro or Pro Max and could drive customers to upgrade their

hardware as a result.

Key developments that could influence markets on Tuesday:

- UK May Claimant count, April wages and unemployment

data

- Various ECB officials speak, including chief economist

Philip Lane and French central bank chief Francois Villeroy de

Galhau

- Bank of Finland press conference on the outlook for the

Finnish economy

- U.S. NFIB Small Business Optimism Survey