U.S. markets are closed Monday. European stocks were lower Monday morning as investors in the region gear up for the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The Stoxx 600 index was down 0.55% at 2:10 p.m. in London, with most sectors lower. Household goods fell 1% as as travel stocks climbed 0.76%. The German economy contracted 0.3% in 2023, initial figures published by the national statistics agency showed. Mainland China’s market pared losses from earlier in the session Monday, after the country’s central bank left its medium-term policy loans rate unchanged, while Taiwan stocks rose after voters handed the ruling Democratic Progressive Party a third-straight presidential term. Mainland China’s CSI 300 index closed 0.1% lower at 3,280.91 after falling about 0.5% at open, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 0.26%. The Taiwan Weighted index rose 0.19% to close at 17,546.82 after the ruling Democratic Progressive Party’s Lai Ching-te won the presidential election on Saturday, with more than 40% of the popular vote. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 fell marginally, ending at 7,496.3. Japan’s Nikkei 225 continued its record-breaking run and crossed the 36,000 mark briefly during the session, with the index closing 0.91% higher at 35,901.79, while the Topix also touched new highs, gaining 1.22% to finish at 2,524.6. South Korea’s Kospi ended marginally above the flatline at 2,525.99, snapping its eight-day losing streak, while the small-cap Kosdaq fell nearly 1% and closed at 859.71. Oil prices slipped on Monday with traders watching out for supply disruption risk in the Middle East following strikes by U.S. and British forces to stop Houthi militia in Yemen from attacking ships in the Red Sea. Brent crude futures fell 31 cents, or 0.4%, to $77.98 a barrel by 0124 GMT after settling up 1.1% on Friday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $72.36 a barrel, down 32 cents, or 0.4%, following a near 1% gain in the previous session. Gold prices edged up on Monday, holding above the $2,050 level on safe-haven appeal from elevated tensions in the Middle East and on renewed bets for an early rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve. Spot gold was up 0.2% at $2,053.69 per ounce, as of 0435 GMT, after marking its biggest daily gain since Dec. 12 on Friday. U.S. gold futures rose 0.3% to $2,057.70.