Global equities mixed as Japan leads gains, oil climbs on Middle East uncertainty

Shares in Europe and Asia were mixed on Monday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 posting a 2.1% rise to 66,970.22 after gains on Wall Street. Germany's DAX edged up 0.3%, France's CAC 40 slipped 0.1%, and Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.3%. In the United States, futures for the S&P 500 were slightly higher, while Dow Jones futures were marginally lower.

In Tokyo, technology stocks drove the market higher; Tokyo Electron gained 4.1% and Advantest rose 6.4%. South Korea's Kospi added 0.7% despite modest declines in major chipmakers, with Samsung Electronics down 0.4% and SK Hynix down 0.1%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng increased 1.1% and Shanghai's Composite rose 0.7%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.3%, while Taiwan's Taiex jumped 1.6% and India's Sensex was largely unchanged.

Oil prices advanced as uncertainty over Middle East developments persisted. Brent crude rose 0.8% to $84.23 a barrel and U.S. crude gained 0.7% to $78.72. The increase followed Israel's rejection of a U.S.-proposed Gaza deal and reports of Iranian-backed Houthi attacks on a Red Sea port, raising concerns about shipping routes.

"Negotiators said that a deal to establish a safe shipping route was close, but Iran may now be exploring just how much it can extract from the U.S. in return," said Bas van Geffen, senior macro strategist at Rabobank.

Investors await several U.S. inflation reports this week, including the July consumer price index, forecast at a 3.4% annual rise, slightly below June's 3.5%. A recent U.S. jobs report showed an unexpected loss of 23,000 jobs, prompting hopes that the Federal Reserve may delay further rate hikes. Technology shares continued to support market gains, with Nvidia up 2.3% and Broadcom up 1.7%.

The U.S. dollar strengthened to 158.72 yen, while the euro slipped to $1.15617.