Stock Market Today: Global Stocks Decline After Wall Street's Worst Week

Hong Kong, Jan 8 (AP) European markets opened weaker while Asian stocks retreated on Monday after Wall Street logged its worst week since Halloween.

The futures for the SandP 500 edged 0.1 per cent lower and that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.3 per cent, after Congressional leaders reached an agreement on overall spending levels for the current fiscal year that could help avoid a partial government shutdown later this month.

Oil prices fell after Saudi Arabia on Sunday cut oil prices to Asian markets to their lowest level in 27 months.

Germany's DAX gained 0.1 per cent to 16,620.57, with data showing exports rose 3.7 per cent in November while a feeble increase in factory orders showed the economy was still far from a solid recovery.

The CAC 40 in Paris slipped 0.1 per cent to 7,413.53. Britain's FTSE 100 lost 0.3 per cent to 7,670.10.

In Asian trading, Hong Kong's Hang Seng sank 1.9 per cent to 16,179.00, led by losses for property and technology shares, which dropped 3.3 per cent. The Shanghai Composite index slipped 1.4 per cent to 2,887.54.

Property shares were heavily sold following news that major Chinese shadow bank Zhongzhi Enterprise Group, a major lender to real estate developers, filed for bankruptcy in Beijing. Meanwhile, troubled developer China Evergrande's electric vehicle company said its vice chairman had been detained on suspicion of unspecified “crimes.”

China announced sanctions Sunday against five American defense-related companies in response to US arms sales to Taiwan and US sanctions on Chinese companies and individuals. The announcement came ahead of a presidential election in Taiwan that is centred around the self-ruled island's relationship with China, which claims it as its own territory.

In South Korea, the Kospi shed 0.4 per cent, to 2,567.82, and Australia's SandP/ASX 200 lost 0.5 per cent to 7,451.50. Taiwan's Taiex gained 0.3 per cent, while the SET in Bangkok was 0.6 per cent lower.

Markets in Japan were closed for a holiday.

Investors are waiting for inflation reports later this week from Japan, the US and China.

Friday on Wall Street, the SandP 500 rose 0.2 per cent, capping its first losing week in the last 10. It roared into 2024 on hopes that inflation and the overall economy are cooling enough for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates sharply through the year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1 per cent and the Nasdaq composite also added 0.1 per cent.

Treasury yields swung sharply in the bond market after the latest monthly jobs report showed US employers unexpectedly accelerated their hiring in December. Average hourly pay for workers also rose, when economists had been forecasting a dip.

Such strong numbers are good news for workers, and they should keep the economy humming. That's a positive for corporate profits, which are one of the main factors that set prices for stocks.

Wall Street's worry is the strong data could also convince the Federal Reserve that inflation remains a hazard. But another report on Friday showed that growth for finance, real estate and other companies in the US services industries slowed by more than economists expected last month.

Altogether, the data could bolster Wall Street's building hopes for a perfect landing for the economy, one where it slows just enough through high interest rates to stamp out high inflation but not so much that it causes a recession.

In other dealings, the yield on the 10-year Treasury was at 4.05 per cent early Monday, up from 4.04 per cent late Friday.

US benchmark crude oil slipped 66 cents to USD 73.15 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the international standard, lost 68 cents to USD 78.08 per barrel.

The US dollar fell to 144.50 Japanese Yen from 144.59 Yen. The Euro declined to USD 1.0933 from USD 1.0941 late Friday.