World shares are mixed as a US government shutdown adds to uncertainty
[October 01, 2025] By
ELAINE KURTENBACH
U.S. futures sank and world shares were mixed after a U.S. government
shutdown began on Wednesday.
The futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were
down 0.6%. On Tuesday, the S&P 500 rose 0.4% and the Dow gained 0.2%, to
set an all-time high. The Nasdaq composite ticked 0.3% higher to
22,660.01.
In early European trading, Germany's DAX lost 0.2% to 23,916.90 and the
CAC 40 in Paris gave up 0.2% to 7,907.99. Britain's FTSE rose 0.7% to
9,416.30.
In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 index shed 0.9% to 44,550.85 after the Bank
of Japan reported a slight improvement in business sentiment among major
manufacturers.
The indications from the BOJ's quarterly tankan survey raise the odds
that the central bank will increase its key interest rate to counter
inflation that has topped its target range of about 2% for some time.
Political uncertainty is also looming over Japan's markets, with the
ruling Liberal Democratic Party due to chose a new leader and prime
minister later this week to replace embattled Prime Minister Shigeru
Ishiba.
Markets and offices in mainland China are closed until Oct. 8 for the
National Day holiday, China's central bank said it plans a 1.1 trillion
yuan ($160 billion) reverse repo operation on Oct. 9, to increase the
amount of cash in circulation and stimulate consumer spending and
business investment.
Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea's Kospi gained 0.9% to 3,455.83, while
Taiwan's Taiex added 0.6% on heavy buying of semiconductor-related
shares.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 slipped less than 0.1%, to 8,845.70.
In India, the Sensex rose 0.8%.
Markets appeared to be taking the U.S. shutdown, which took effect at
midnight U.S. Eastern time, in stride. Past U.S. government shutdowns
have had a limited impact on the economy and stock market, and many
investors expect something similar this time around.
Many economists and professional investors expect something similar this
time around.
This shutdown could be different, with the White House prone to push for
large-scale firings of federal workers.
The broad stock market has been on a nearly relentless run since hitting
a low in April on expectations that President Donald Trump’s tariffs
won’t derail global trade and that the Federal Reserve will cut interest
rates several times to boost the slowing job market.
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Currency traders work near a screen showing the Korea Composite
Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S.
dollar and South Korean won, top right, at the foreign exchange
dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea,
Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
 Tuesday brought mixed reports on the
U.S. economy. A Conference Board survey showed consumers are feeling
less confident than economists expected, with many respondents
pointing to the job market and to inflation that has remained higher
than anyone would like.
A second report suggested the job market may be remaining in its
“low-hire, low-fire” state. U.S. employers were advertising roughly
the same number of job openings at the end of August as the month
before. The hope on Wall Street had been for a number that’s neither
too high nor too low, one balanced enough to keep the Fed on track
to continue cutting interest rates.
The Fed just delivered its first cut of the year, and officials have
penciled in more to give the job market a boost.
When Wall Street will get the next data reports on the job market is
uncertain, since a government shutdown would cause delays for
several important reports, including Friday’s on how many jobs U.S.
employers created and destroyed in September.
The Department of Labor has said that the Bureau of Labor Statistics
will completely cease operations if there’s a lapse. The agency
already was strained by Trump's firing of Erika McEntarfer as BLS
commissioner on Aug. 1 after the July jobs report showed a rapid
slowdown in hiring, with job gains in May and June revised much
lower than initially estimated.
Late Tuesday, the White House said Trump was withdrawing the
nomination of E.J. Antoni to lead the bureau, according to an AP
source who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a White
House action that hadn't been publicly announced.
Oil prices fell back early Wednesday, with U.S. benchmark crude oil
shedding 21 cents to $62.16 per barrel. Brent crude, the
international standard, lost 22 cents to $65.80 per barrel.
The U.S. dollar fell to 147.13 Japanese yen from 147.94 yen. The
euro climbed to $1.1752 from $1.1734.
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