Asian markets make jittery start to Monday

Asian share markets slipped on Monday as unease over AI's enormous funding needs undermined confidence ahead of a week packed with earnings, while the euro eased in the wake of rioting across France. A fall in oil prices offered some support to bonds and Wall Street stock futures, limiting Asia's losses. Oil fell following US President Donald Trump's decision to waive some sanctions on Russia, though he later said a final decision on the matter had not been made. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Saturday that the president would take up to 60 days to assess the economic impact of such a move. Brent futures still fell 1.6 percent to US$108.06 a barrel, while US crude futures lost 0.7 percent to US$100.70 a barrel. Meanwhile, Iran reported another tanker had hit a mine in the Strait of Hormuz. Geopolitical tensions combined with safe-haven flows from equities to extend a rally in sovereign bonds, with 10-year Treasury yields down three basis points at 5.0645 percent, having just recorded their largest weekly fall in over eight months. All of this helped S&P 500 futures edge up 0.5 percent, while Nasdaq futures rose 0.8 percent. Asian markets were hampered by concerns about tech; Japan's Nikkei fell...