LONDON: European stocks and gold prices rose, while Wall Street futures fell on Wednesday as the US government shut down after lawmakers failed to reach a funding deal.&nbsp;The prospect of services in the United States being closed pushed gold to another record high of over $3,895.&nbsp;In Asia, Tokyo&#39;s stock market sank, while Hong Kong and Shanghai were closed for holidays.&nbsp;Pharmaceutical shares lifted European markets after Pfizer was granted a reprieve from President Donald Trump&#39;s tariffs by agreeing to lower drug prices in the United States.&nbsp;Trump also announced plans to unveil a website that will allow consumers to purchase certain medications directly from manufacturers at discounted rates.&nbsp;While details remain scarce, shares in British pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca rose by more than six percent, and GSK was up almost three percent in London.&nbsp;The dollar remained under pressure due to concerns caused by the US government&#39;s partial shutdown, which began on Wednesday.&nbsp;Democrats and Republicans failed to break a budget impasse, with talks hinging on health care funding.&nbsp;&quot;Historically, shutdowns have been bad for the US dollar, bad for US equities, and bad for bonds too,&quot; said Emma Wall, chief investment strategist at Hargreaves Lansdown.&nbsp;&quot;Should the shutdown remain unresolved it is likely to drive money outside of the US to markets with more certainty,&quot; she added.&nbsp;While most shutdowns end after a short period, investors were concerned that it could prevent the release on Friday of the key non-farm payrolls report, a crucial guide for the Fed in its rate decisions.&nbsp;The closure will result in the halt of non-essential operations, leaving hundreds of thousands of civil servants temporarily unpaid, and potentially disrupting many social safety net benefit payments.&nbsp;Trump threatened to punish Democrats during any stoppage by targeting progressive priorities and forcing mass public sector job cuts.&nbsp;&quot;Shutdowns have delivered bouts of volatility, but the precedent has been that weakness tends to be short-lived,&quot; noted Joshua Mahony, chief market analyst at Scope Markets.&nbsp;Futures on all three main indexes in New York were in the red.&nbsp;India&#39;s rupee also made small inroads as the country&#39;s central bank decided against cutting interest rates, despite inflation remaining low; however, the unit continued to hover around record lows against the US dollar.&nbsp;The South Asian currency has been hit by concerns over stalled trade talks with the Trump administration, which will not soften the painful tariffs. At the same time, Washington&#39;s strict immigration measures have added to worries.&nbsp;The two sides remain in talks despite sharp disagreements over agricultural trade and New Delhi&#39;s purchases of Russian oil.&nbsp;In company news, Australian mining titan BHP fell 2.5 percent following reports that China had told steelmakers to temporarily stop buying seagoing, dollar-denominated cargoes from the firm, as part of a pricing dispute.&nbsp;

Business

European stocks and gold rose as Wall Street futures fell after a US government shutdown. Pharma shares gained on a tariff reprieve, while the dollar weakened, Tokyo stocks slid, and investors feared economic disruption, as well as a delayed US jobs data release.

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European stocks rise, Wall Street futures drop as US shutdown begins