Global equity markets lost ground on Monday as traders remained cautious amid rising geopolitical tensions and uncertainty over the U.S. presidential election, helping to push gold futures to new highs. The benchmark S&P 500 and Dow finished lower, with defensive stocks including real estate and healthcare among the leading drags. The European shares index lost 0.66%, while MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe fell 0.37%. Oil prices settled up nearly 2% after a more than 7% drop last week. The dollar climbed, buoyed by a rise in U.S. bond yields.