Economic calendar: Politics in the spotlight

• Stock markets start the week higher

• US Electoral College vote

• Brexit talks extended

Start of a new week was marked with small gains on the Asian exchanges as well as the oil market. Futures point to a higher opening of the European session. Economic calendar is light today as it is usually the case for Mondays. However, there will be some interesting events when it comes to politics. Firstly, EU chief negotiator Barnier is expected to hold a briefing at 7:30 am GMT (talks were once again extended beyond deadline). Secondly, US Electoral College will vote today. Electors from across the United States will cast their ballots that should make Biden's victory official. Two major central banks will announce monetary policy decision late in the week - Fed (Wednesday, 7:00 pm GMT) and Bank of England (Thursday, 12:00 pm GMT)

Events to watch during the day:

7:30 am GMT - Brexit briefing

10:00 am GMT - Euro area, industrial production for October. Expected: 2% MoM. Previous: -0.4% MoM

Overnight events:

0:30 am GMT - RBA minutes

2:00 am GMT - Monthly data from China for November

• Urban investments. Expected: 2.6% YoY. Previous: 1.8% YoY

• Industrial production. Expected: 7% YoY. Previous: 6.9% YoY

• Retail sales. Expected: 5.1% YoY. Previous: 4.3% YoY