U.S. markets will be closed Monday for the Juneteenth holiday. European markets fell at the start of the new trading week as investors remained jittery over the economic outlook. The benchmark Stoxx 600 index was 0.74% lower at 1:45 p.m. London time, with most sectors declining. Chemicals stocks led losses, down 2.1%, as banks eked out a 0.25% gain. Construction stocks fell 2% amid warnings of a looming U.K. mortgage crunch and a dip in house asking prices, as figures showed the average rate of a two-year fixed-rate deal crept over 6% for the first time since December. The Bank of England will announce its latest interest rate decision on Thursday, along with the Swiss National Bank. Asia-Pacific markets largely fell on Monday, with Japan’s markets hovering near 33-year highs. The Nikkei 225 has posted weekly gains for the last 10 weeks, but slipped 1% on Monday to close at 33,370.42 along with the Topix, which fell 0.43% and ended at 2,290.5. South Korea’s Kospi dropped 0.62% to end at 2,609.5, while the Kosdaq was up marginally to finish at 888.61. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 0.7% along with the Hang Seng Tech index, which slid 1.45%. In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite was down 0.54%, finishing the day at 3,255.8 and the Shenzhen Component dropped 0.28%, closing at 11,274.05. This is ahead of the central bank’s loan prime rate decision on Tuesday, after it cut some of its key lending rates last week. Australia bucked the wider trend in the region. The S&P/ASX 200 was higher by 0.6%, closing at 7,294.9, led by utilities and consumer services stocks. On the diplomatic front, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Beijing on a diplomatic mission to repair strained ties between the U.S. and China. Global oil prices fell more than $1 on Monday, backing off last week’s gains, as questions over China’s economy outweighed OPEC+ output cuts and the seventh straight drop in the number of oil and gas rigs operating in the United States. Brent crude lost $1.15, or 1.5%, to trade at $75.46 a barrel by 0350 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was down $1.09, or 1.5%, to $70.69. Last week, Brent posted a gain of 2.4% and WTI rose 2.3%. Gold prices ticked down in light trade on Monday, pressured by a stronger dollar, as investors assessed the path ahead for interest rates following hawkish remarks from U.S. Federal Reserve policymakers. Spot gold fell 0.1% to $1,955.79 per ounce by 0433 GMT. U.S. gold futures were down 0.2% to $1,967.20. The dollar index edged up, making bullion less attractive for buyers holding other currencies.