TOKYO (AP) — Global stocks were mostly lower Wednesday as Wall Street suffered its worst day in weeks, breaking a record bull market.
France’s CAC40 rose 0.1% to 8,139.15 in early trade, while Germany’s DAX rose 0.3% to 18,331.04. Britain’s FTSE 100 index fell 0.6% to 7,887.60. US stocks turned lower, with Dow futures down 0.1% to 39,475.00. S&P 500 futures fell 0.2% to 5,251.50.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.8% in morning trading to 39,511.88 yen. Sydney’s S&P/ASX 200 index fell 1.3% to 7,782.50. South Korea’s Kospi fell 1.4% to 2,714.18. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.1% to 16,753.82, and the Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.2% to 3,070.04.
Analysts said despite recent relatively positive signs for China’s economy, there were growing concerns that the unrest rocking Wall Street could spill over into Asia.
“Investors believe this disruption could signal the beginning of a more significant market correction,” said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management.
China has set an ambitious target for economic growth of around 5% this year as it seeks to overcome recent problems in its real estate sector and the lingering effects of pandemic-era disruptions.
A new Moody’s Ratings report predicts that the difficult financial situation for Japan’s manufacturing industry will worsen over the next 12 to 18 months due to the slowdown in the Chinese economy.
“China is an important market for Japanese manufacturers of factory automation and other industrial equipment, auto parts, and elevator and escalator systems. Reducing demand in China will weigh on the company’s overall earnings and cash flow.” Ta.
Traders have already sharply lowered their expectations for how many times the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates this year, with half as many cuts as before. At the beginning of the year, 6 people predicted. This would be in line with three rate cuts that Fed officials themselves have been hinting at.
With the U.S. economy continuing to perform better than expected, investors say it’s increasingly likely that the Fed will cut interest rates just twice this year.
In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude rose 4 cents to $85.19 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard crude, rose 7 cents to $89.01 a barrel.
In currency trading, the dollar rose from 151.54 yen to 151.71 yen. The euro rose to $1.0775 from $1.0776.
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AP Business Writer Stan Cho contributed.
