Stocks across Europe closed in the red Monday, with shares in Paris retreating from a nine-year high after market favorite Emmanuel Macron won the French presidential election on Sunday.
The S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite notched records on Monday, but major U.S. equity indexes finished little-changed as materials shares capped a climb in the energy sector. Trading activity was listless after Emmanuel Macron's closely watched, but expected, presidential election victory in France on Sunday, though the removal of a potential geopolitical headwind took the CBOE Volatility Index VIX, -7.57% to its lowest levels in decades.
Asian stocks were largely quiet Tuesday after strong gains a day earlier, with Australian bank shares among the laggards. Earnings season for that sector came to an end with Commonwealth Bank of Australia reporting underwhelming results. The bank also flagged margin concerns, as some smaller peers have. More pressing is the release later Tuesday of the Australian government's budget proposal. Reports say it will include the introduction of a bank tax.