Post by Logan on Jan 21, 2016 1:02:14 GMT -6
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- Asian stock markets were mostly in the red Thursday, surrendering early gains as oil drifted lower and sentiment remained fragile following big swings on Wall Street.
KEEPING SCORE: Tokyo's Nikkei 225 lost 2.4 percent to 16,017.26 and South Korea's Kospi inched down 0.3 percent to 1,840.53. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was down 1.3 percent to 18,641.56. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.5 percent to 4,864.00. China's Shanghai Composite fell 0.8 percent to 2,951.49. Markets in Taiwan, Singapore and Thailand also were lower. Indonesia rose.
GLOBAL TURBULENCE: Stock markets have taken a beating along with the price of oil as investors believe stock prices have risen too high at a time when the near-term global economic outlook is for modest growth rather than a strong upswing. The IMF lowering its forecast for global growth this year to 3.4 percent, oil falling below $30 a barrel and China's growth slowing to a 25-year low last year have all contributed to the sell-off this week. The European Central Bank is expected to keep interest rates on hold at ultra-low levels when its governing council meets later in the day as it monitors risks from turmoil in global markets.
THE QUOTE: "It is not advisable to interpret any rallies as evidence that we have seen a near-term bottom," Bernard Aw, a market strategist at IG in Singapore, said in a report. "As disciples of technical analysts know very well, a downtrend is typically marked by periods of rebounds."
Continued at hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/F/FINANCIAL_MARKETS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2016-01-21-01-16-18 .
KEEPING SCORE: Tokyo's Nikkei 225 lost 2.4 percent to 16,017.26 and South Korea's Kospi inched down 0.3 percent to 1,840.53. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was down 1.3 percent to 18,641.56. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.5 percent to 4,864.00. China's Shanghai Composite fell 0.8 percent to 2,951.49. Markets in Taiwan, Singapore and Thailand also were lower. Indonesia rose.
GLOBAL TURBULENCE: Stock markets have taken a beating along with the price of oil as investors believe stock prices have risen too high at a time when the near-term global economic outlook is for modest growth rather than a strong upswing. The IMF lowering its forecast for global growth this year to 3.4 percent, oil falling below $30 a barrel and China's growth slowing to a 25-year low last year have all contributed to the sell-off this week. The European Central Bank is expected to keep interest rates on hold at ultra-low levels when its governing council meets later in the day as it monitors risks from turmoil in global markets.
THE QUOTE: "It is not advisable to interpret any rallies as evidence that we have seen a near-term bottom," Bernard Aw, a market strategist at IG in Singapore, said in a report. "As disciples of technical analysts know very well, a downtrend is typically marked by periods of rebounds."
Continued at hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/F/FINANCIAL_MARKETS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2016-01-21-01-16-18 .