Daily summary: European stocks higher in the absence of US traders

• European stocks end session in green
• Growing prospects of the UK leaving the EU without a deal
• Labour Day in the US and Canada

European finished first session of the week higher, as investors welcomed news regarding prospects of potential COVID-19 vaccine and treatments. French company Sanofi announced that the cost of the vaccine which is currently being developed together with British GlaxoSmithKline will be most likely lower than €10. Automakers stock rose sharply after JP Morgan analysts said the overall tone for production outlook in the European autos sector was upbeat. On the Brexit front, Boris Johnson said that the UK and Europe must sign a trade deal by October 15th otherwise Britain will finish negotiations.  The British Prime Minister is also planning to implement new legislation that will override the Brexit withdrawal agreement on Northern Ireland, which puts negotiations in an even more difficult position. EU’s chief Brexit negotiator Barnier said that the UK wants the “best of two worlds”, adding negotiations were difficult. On data front, German industrial productions rose 1.2% in July, showing signs of recovery from April's plunge. DAX 30 rose 1.9%, CAC40 gained 1.8% and FTSE 100 finished 2.3% higher.
US markets are closed today for the Labour Day holiday. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 Index came under pressure as investors remain concerned about value of the sector after companies such as Apple and Tesla have seen significant volume increases in recent days. Meanwhile, US-Sino tensions continue to rise as the American Department of Defense said it might  impose some export restrictions on Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation, which is China’s biggest manufacturer of semiconductors. During today’s session Nasdaq futures dropped over 1.3%, while the Dow rose 0.5% and the S&P 500 erased earlier losses to trade 0.3% higher.
WTI crude dropped more than 1.5% to trade around $39.08 a barrel, while Brent  fell more than 1.6% to trade around $41.90 a barrel as Saudi Arabia, which is a major oil exporter, lowered October’s official selling price for Arab Light crude. Also for the first time since March Saudis cut prices to the US. Meanwhile, according to the data from the General Administration of Customs, China imported 11.18 million bpd of crude oil in Augus, which is a lower amount compare to  12.08 million bpd from July and well below April's record of 12.94 million bpd. The precious metals market was relatively calm today. Gold prices dropped 0.2% to $1,928 an ounce, while silver prices fell 0.18%, below $27 an ounce, amid stronger dollar.
Investors now await the ECB's monetary policy decision on Thursday as well as data on US inflation due later this week.

GBPUSD – British pound was one of the worst performing currencies during today’s session. Cable broke below the 1.3189 support level due to uncertainties regarding Brexit trade deal. If sellers will manage to uphold momentum, then next support at 1.30 may be at risk. On the other hand, if buyers will regain control, the nearest resistance lies at the 1.3270. Source: xStation5