GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks under pressure as Trump vows to end violent protests

* S&P 500 futures turn down going into Asia opening
* Investors like manufacturing recovery

By David Henry
NEW YORK, June 1 (Reuters) - Asian stocks were set to come
under pressure on Tuesday following a dip in Wall Street futures
as U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to use force to end violent
protests in American cities, souring a previously upbeat market
mood.
E-mini futures for the S&P 500 EScv1 fell 0.38% and
Japan's Nikkei 225 futures NKc1 lost 0.34%. Australian S&P/ASX
200 futures YAPcm1 rose 0.15% in early trading.
The early indications came after major U.S. stock indexes
closed with gains of about 0.5% and continued to hover near
three-month highs. As Trump spoke in the Rose Garden of the White House on
Monday, live television images showed police firing tear gas to
dispel demonstrators in Lafayette Park, across the street.
"If American consumers were reluctant to come out of their
COVID-19 lockdown cocoon fearing a secondary spreader, it's
unlikely they will feel any safer with military Humvees rolling
down Pennsylvania Avenue," Stephen Innes, Chief Global Markets
Strategist at AxiCorp, wrote in a note to clients.
As Asian markets prepared to open, dozens of cities across
the United States were under curfews with the National Guard
deployed in 23 states and Washington, D.C.
The curfews followed protests over the death of George
Floyd, a 46-year-old African American who died in Minneapolis
after being pinned beneath a white police officer's knee for
nearly nine minutes.
The dollar index =USD fell 0.4%, as risk appetite had
increased on optimism that the worst of the global economic
downturn caused by the coronavirus may be in the past.
The biggest concern for bond markets was growing U.S.
government debt with the benchmark 10-year Treasury notes
US10YT=RR yield rising to 0.677% from 0.644% on Friday.
"Most investors are saying (the protests) aren't going to
destroy the economy," said Paul Nolte, portfolio manager at
Kingsview Asset Management in Chicago. "It's a roadblock, but
it's not as big as a pandemic."
The protests were largely peaceful on Sunday but turned
violent in the evening. On Monday U.S. President Donald Trump
urged state governors to crack down on protests over racial
inequality that have engulfed the nation's major cities, as
officials extended curfews to prevent a seventh night of looting
and vandalism. Markets were cheered by U.S. manufacturing activity turning
up slightly from an 11-year low in May. The report was the
strongest sign yet that the worst of the economic downturn had
passed as businesses reopened, though the recovery from the
COVID-19 crisis could take years because of high unemployment.
Similarly, in the euro zone, the IHS Markit's Manufacturing
Purchasing Managers' Index recovered slightly in May from
April's record low, although factory activity still contracted
heavily. Oil futures steadied on Monday despite U.S.-China trade
tensions with Brent LCOc1 up 1.3% to settle at $38.32 a barrel
and U.S. crude CLc1 slipping 5 cents to $35.44 a barrel.
Spot gold XAU= added 0.8% to $1,739.75 an ounce. U.S.
gold futures GCc1 gained 0.03% to $1,737.40 an ounce.
In the trade dispute, sources in China said the government
had told them to halt purchases of U.S. soybeans after Trump
moved to eliminate special treatment for Hong Kong to punish
Beijing over its new security laws for the city. Though investors are closely watching for news on medical
advances against the pandemic, to markets took in stride mixed
news from Gilead Sciences Inc , GILD.O whose shares fell about
4%. Gilead said that its antiviral drug remdesivir provided a
modest benefit in patients with moderate COVID-19 given a
five-day course of the treatment, while those who received the
medicine for 10 days in the study did not fare as well.
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