Shares of banks and other financial institutions fell amid mixed signals from property markets.

Chinese property developers such as China Vanke and Country Garden rose sharply amid growing anticipation that Beijing would step in to provide stimulus for the beleaguered sector.

In the U.S., signals from the housing market remain negative. New home sales fell 0.6% in July, even as builders offered buyers a range of incentives, reflecting the impact of stubbornly high mortgage rates.

Even if the Federal Reserve cuts interest rates, there's a danger that inflation expectations remain elevated, which would buoy long-dated Treasury yields from which mortgage rates are derived, said J.D. Joyce, president of Houston financial advisory Joyce Wealth Management.

Canadian banks mostly fell ahead of earnings later in the week, which are likely to show strength due to deal and credit-market activity.

Italian bank UniCredit said it converted part of its position in peer Commerzbank into stock, raising its equity stake in the German bank it hopes to engineer a merger with to 26%.

Write to Rob Curran at rob.curran@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 25, 2025 18:12 ET (22:12 GMT)

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