European Shares Poised To Open Lower

European stocks look set to open a tad lower on Monday amid rising coronavirus cases in Europe and a lack of material development on U.S. stimulus package.

Europe's weekly Covid-19 infections are now higher than the continent's first coronavirus peak in March, the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned.

U.K. Health Secretary Matt Hancock on Sunday warned that Covid-19 restrictions in England will get tougher if people don't follow government rules designed to stop the spread of the virus.

Earlier, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that the country is experiencing the start of a second wave of Covid-19 and stricter lockdown measures will be introduced across the country.

France saw nearly 13,500 new infections in the last 24 hours and there are fears Madrid could be overwhelmed. In the U.S., at least 18 members of the House of Representatives and Senate have tested positive or are presumed to have had Covid-19.

On the stimulus front, U.S. lawmakers remain deadlocked over a new rescue package for the beleaguered economy.

Traders await testimony from Fed Chair Jerome Powell and U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin later in the week, with both likely to stress the importance of additional fiscal stimulus.

Investors also remain wary of simmering tensions between Beijing and Washington after Global Times newspaper reported that HSBC could be included in China's list of "unreliable entities" for endangering national security.

Over the weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump said he supported a deal in principle that would allow TikTok to continue operations in the country.

Asian markets are moving lower in thin trade amid a holiday in Japan. Gold edged lower while oil prices held steady as a tropical storm took aim for the U.S. Gulf of Mexico region halting some production.

The offshore yuan edged higher as China kept its benchmark lending rate for corporate and household loans steady for the fifth straight month.

The euro gained ground against the dollar after reports that the European Central Bank is considering changes to its pandemic emergency purchase program.

U.S. stocks ended lower on Friday as investors fretted over rising coronavirus cases, uncertainty around further stimulus spending and a patchy economic recovery. The Dow slid 0.9 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 shed around 1.1 percent each.

European markets also fell on Friday as Covid-19 cases topped 30 million worldwide and the World Organization warned of a "very serious situation" arising in Europe.

The pan European Stoxx 600 gave up 0.7 percent. The German DAX and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 both slid around 0.7 percent, while France's CAAC 40 index lost 1.2 percent.