Asia Business

Most markets fell in Asia on Tuesday following a sell-off in New York as traders fret that central bank efforts to tame inflation will tip economies into recession.

Sentiment was also being weighed down by a spike in Covid infections in China as officials roll back many of the strict containment measures that have been in place for almost three years.

A so-called Santa rally appears to be eluding investors, with the mood dampened by last week’s warnings from the Federal Reserve and European Central Bank that they will likely push interest rates higher than expected next year.

The remarks dealt a blow to a short rally across equities that had been fuelled by data showing inflation coming down.

Adding to the selling pressure were comments from former New York Fed chief William Dudley, who told Bloomberg Television that any sign of optimism in markets could make monetary policymakers tighten even more.

In early trade, Hong Kong led losses with tech firms tracking a sell-off in US giants including Amazon and Apple, while Shanghai, Sydney, Seoul, Singapore, Wellington, Taipei, Manila and Jakarta were also in the red.

However, Tokyo edged up slightly ahead of a Bank of Japan policy decision later in the day.

“Those who were in the camp of a year-end rally are now second-guessing their investment thesis,” said JC O’Hara of MKM Partners.

“The markets may have placed a little too much faith in Santa Claus and the rally he typically brings.”

With few catalysts to drive trade, investors are winding down for the Christmas break, though they are keeping a close eye on developments in China, which is suffering a sharp jump in Covid cases.

Officials last month started to move away from their rigid zero-Covid policy of lockdowns and mass testing following widespread protests.

And while the shift has been welcomed as a much-needed boost to the world’s number-two economy, there is growing anxiety about the immediate impact on businesses and the healthcare system.

“A massive China reopening bounce is giving way to a reality check as investors come to grips with numerous zero-Covid offramp economic and medical issues that China is simply unprepared to handle,” said SPI Asset Management’s Stephen Innes.

“Especially if the predicted 10 million-plus daily Covid cases hit the healthcare system later this month.”

Still, the expected pick-up in demand from the China reopening continues to support commodity prices, with both main oil contracts up more than one percent, extending Monday’s gains.

– Key figures around 0230 GMT –

Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 0.3 percent at 27,315.54 (break)

Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.6 percent at 19,242.72

Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.4 percent at 3,099.38

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0607 from $1.0610 on Monday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2153 from $1.2148

Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.28 pence from 87.31 pence

Dollar/yen: UP at 137.27 yen from 136.95 yen

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.2 percent at $76.12 per barrel

Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.2 percent at $80.73 per barrel

New York – Dow: DOWN 0.5 percent at 32,757.54 (close)

London – FTSE 100: UP 0.4 percent at 7,361.31 (close)

Expectations heading into a UN biodiversity conference in Montreal were about as low as they could be. 

But a broad recognition that it was now or never for nature — and a flurry of late diplomacy by China —  helped seal a “historic” deal on a night of high drama.

Dubbed the “ugly duckling” of global policy, the COP15 negotiations were snubbed by world leaders who had just attended a far higher-profile climate summit in Egypt.

Beijing, which held the presidency of the talks, at first appeared to have a hands-off approach, and the defining issue — whether the rich world would pledge enough money so their developing counterparts could protect vanishing species and habitats — seemed too great to surmount.

“For months, there was the question: Where is China?” a high-level source close to the matter told AFP.

What’s more, relations between China and Canada, which had to step in to host the event because of China’s strict Covid rules, have deteriorated in recent years.

Canada’s 2018 arrest of Chinese telecommunications executive Meng Wanzhou at the request of the United States was followed quickly by China arresting two Canadians.

Just last month, Chinese leader Xi Jinping was caught on camera scolding Canada’s Justin Trudeau over a sleight. 

What’s more, “it’s strange to have a Chinese presidency on North American soil,” said the high-level source — and early signs did nothing to dispel assumptions that China in charge would mean a weakening of ambition.

In the first week, China let Canada run the show shepherding talks on the key issues, from finance to the cornerstone target of protecting 30 percent of land and oceans by 2030.

But as the clock ticked down, it was China that took charge of the text, in an approach described as “gentle” diplomacy: having subject experts and political representatives work in a calm, even environment, according to another diplomatic source.

“China closed out the deal and cornered the developing countries with the $30 billion financing pledge by 2030,” said a third source, a European negotiator. 

When countries of the Global North sought more ambitious targets from the South, China responded by telling them they’d need to up their financing. And Beijing acted as a neutral arbiter, not aligning itself with the Group of 77 as it normally does.

“They’ve taken the risk of putting their own reputation on the line for something many thought they weren’t the natural leaders of,” said Lee White, a British-Gabonese conservationist and minister of water, forests and environment of Gabon. 

Nor is China a natural champion of environmental issues, having badly polluted its air and waters and degraded much of its land through agricultural production — a process it is trying to reverse through a greenification campaign. 

“Countries that destroy their biodiversity end up regretting it —  I think the Chinese probably got to that point and are now trying to put things right,” said White.

– High drama –

The passage of China’s compromise text wasn’t smooth sailing. 

A plenary session to ratify the text was postponed Sunday several times to accommodate last minute holdouts, though delegates were eventually asked to take their seats by around 9:00 pm, and wait. And wait, and wait, and wait. 

Some left the main hall to take naps, with several Western delegates expressing irritation that the session was not being adjourned until the next day.

It was around 3:00 am that the session finally began. A new text had been uploaded, and participants were once more buzzing at the prospect of a “peace pact for nature.” When delegates gathered in the vast plenary hall, drama struck.

A delegate from Democratic Republic of Congo refused to back the accord, demanding more funds.

The conference chair, China’s environment minister Huang Runqiu, brushed this off, declaring the deal “approved” and whacking down his gavel to loud applause. DRC’s ally Uganda branded it a “fraud” and a “coup,” but the accord passed.

An exultant Steven Guilbeault, Canada’s environment minister, downplayed the drama — insisting the process was upheld by the United Nations and disagreements on this scale were commonplace at such summits which he had been attending for 25 years.

“I’ve never seen a presidency text tabled and have so much support for it from the get-go,” with the vast majority of countries signing up right away, he enthused.

On cooperation with China, he told AFP: “We both decided to set aside our differences… to focus on what unites us,” adding: “What China and Canada have accomplished together in our relationship is symbolic of what we’ve accomplished here together, more than 196 countries.”

While China took center stage, the United States participated only in a supporting role.

President Joe Biden supports the pact’s goals and announced his own “30×30” plan domestically — but political opposition by Republicans prevents the US from signing on to the convention on biological diversity.

European equities rose Monday in light pre-Christmas trade, rebounding gently from last week’s losses that followed bumper interest rate hikes, but Wall Street and Asian markets failed to get into the holiday spirit.

Equity markets often experience a so-called Santa rally, when prices rise during thin year-end trading dominated by small investors in a festive mood.

“Everyone, it seems, is waiting to see if Santa is going to come around, which leaves the market stuck between feelings of hope and angst,” said market analyst Patrick O’Hare at Briefing.com.

Major indices in New York were in the red most of the day and finished firmly lower, with the S&P 500 off 0.9 percent.

Michael Hewson at CMC Markets said that most investors are likely “content to sit on the sidelines with the main focus likely to be on this week’s core PCE inflation data and personal spending numbers for November which are due on Friday.”

But in Europe, stocks moved timidly higher.

Both Frankfurt and London rose 0.4 percent, while Paris added 0.3 percent.

“Markets are grinding higher as some traders are optimistic about valuations which seem to them somewhat attractive,” AvaTrade analyst Naeem Aslam told AFP.

“We really don’t have much volume in markets as traders are away for holidays,” he added.

“Overall I think it’s going to be pretty subdued trading, given the lack of significant data to react to,” noted analyst Susannah Streeter at stockbroker Hargreaves Lansdown.

Asian indices fell on lingering concern over a possible global recession caused by moves to fight inflation from top central banks.

Equities took a turn south last week after monetary policymakers around the world signaled that while price rises appeared to be stabilizing, more work would be needed to get them under control.

Adding to the downbeat mood was a spike in Covid-19 cases in China following the country’s reopening after almost three years of strict containment measures.

While the move is expected to boost the world’s number two economy, there is a worry that businesses and China’s health system will be hit in the near term.

Still, Beijing flagged a number of measures aimed at kickstarting growth next year, including support for the beleaguered property sector.

An expected pick-up in Chinese demand helped propel oil prices higher, as did plans by the United States to refill its strategic oil reserves.

– Key figures around 2040 GMT –

New York – Dow: DOWN 0.5 percent at 32,757.54 (close)

New York – S&P 500: DOWN 0.9 percent at 3,817.66 (close)

New York – Nasdaq: DOWN 1.5 percent at 10,546.03 (close)

London – FTSE 100: UP 0.4 percent at 7,361.31 (close)

Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.4 percent at 13,942.87 (close)

Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.3 percent at 6,473.29 (close)

EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.2 percent at 3,811.24 (close)

Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.1 percent at 27,237.64 (close)

Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.5 percent at 19,352.81 (close)

Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.9 percent at 3,107.11 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0610 from $1.0586 on Friday

Pound/dollar: FLAT at $1.2148

Euro/pound: UP at 87.31 pence from 87.14 pence

Dollar/yen: UP at 136.95 yen from 136.60 yen

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.2 percent at $75.19 per barrel

Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.0 percent at $79.80 per barrel

burs-jmb/sst

Auction house Christie’s on Monday announced record sales of $8.4 billion in 2022, outshining its rival Sotheby’s, which also posted its best-ever result at $8 billion for the year.

Christie’s racked up $7.2 billion in auctions and another $1.2 billion in private sales, easily topping the $7.1 billion it made in 2021 as the art world emerged from the Covid-19 pandemic, which greatly hindered auction operations.

“In 2022, despite a challenging macro-environment, Christie’s has achieved our highest ever global sales,” chief executive officer Guillaume Cerutti said, referring to economic challenges sparked by inflation and the war in Ukraine.

He noted “the resilience of the art and luxury markets, the remarkable success of several major art collections — including the unforgettable Paul Allen sale — and the expertise and hard work of our teams around the world.”

Allen, the co-founder of Microsoft alongside Bill Gates, died in 2018. In 2009, he signed the “Giving Pledge” — a promise to donate the majority of one’s wealth to charity.

His extensive collection, spanning 500 years of art history, raked in a massive $1.6 billion. Five works went for more than $100 million each, including a Cezanne, a Van Gogh and a Gauguin.

And at a separate Christie’s sale in May, a famed Andy Warhol portrait of Marilyn Monroe — “Shot Sage Blue Marilyn” — sold for $195 million, setting a record for a piece of 20th century art.

– Who was buying? –

This year at Christie’s, buyers from North and South America accounted for more of total sales as compared with 2021 — 40 percent of the value versus 35 percent — while Asian buyers were on the decline.

Nevertheless, according to French billionaire Francois Pinault, whose holding company Artemis controls Christie’s, Asian buyers were “absolutely crucial” to the overall success of the Allen sale. 

The auction house said its banner year was fueled by a “new generation of collectors”: 35 percent of all buyers in 2022 were first-time clients, and 34 percent of them qualify as millennials.

Asia has the “fastest-growing base of new collectors,” Christie’s said. 

Cerutti noted that cars and real estate did not figure in the results.

Last week, Sotheby’s announced a year-end total sales projection of $8 billion, as compared with $7.3 billion in 2021. That data includes art and luxury items, but also homes and collector cars.

The auction house — owned by French-Israeli telecoms magnate Patrick Drahi — also noted that its client base in Asia was “rapidly expanding,” and that those collectors were “spending more per person on average than collectors from elsewhere.”

European equities rose Monday in light pre-Christmas trade, rebounding gently from last week’s losses that followed bumper interest rate hikes, but Wall Street and Asian markets failed to get into the festive spirit.

Equity markets often experience a so-called Santa rally, when prices rise during thin year-end trading dominated by small investors in a festive mood.

“Everyone, it seems, is waiting to see if Santa is going to come around, which leaves the market stuck between feelings of hope and angst,” said market analyst Patrick O’Hare at Briefing.com.

“Accordingly, there isn’t much happening at the broad market level this morning,” he added.

The blue-chip Dow edged lower in late morning trading, while the broader S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite showed deeper losses.

Michael Hewson at CMC Markets said that most investors are likely “content to sit on the side-lines with the main focus likely to be on this week’s core PCE inflation data and personal spending numbers for November which are due on Friday.”

Meanwhile in Europe, stocks moved timidly higher.

Both Frankfurt and London rose 0.4 percent, while Paris added 0.3 percent.

“Markets are grinding higher as some traders are optimistic about valuations which seem to them somewhat attractive,” AvaTrade analyst Naeem Aslam told AFP.

“We really don’t have much volume in markets as traders are away for holidays,” he added.

“Overall I think it’s going to be pretty subdued trading, given the lack of significant data to react to,” noted analyst Susannah Streeter at stockbroker Hargreaves Lansdown.

Asian indices, however, fell on lingering concern over a possible global recession caused by moves to fight inflation from top central banks.

Equities took a turn south last week after monetary policymakers around the world signalled that while price rises appeared to be stabilising, more work would be needed to get them under control.

All three main indexes on Wall Street ended sharply lower Friday after the Federal Reserve warned it would continue tightening monetary policy into 2023.

That was followed by similar warnings from the European Central Bank and Bank of England, while data suggested economies were feeling the pinch, dealing a blow to sentiment heading into the Christmas break.

“With no shortage of economic headwinds, investors struggle to find something cheerful about this holiday week after the two most dominant central banks cast a pall over the proceedings,” said SPI Asset Management’s Stephen Innes.

The US sell-off fed through to Asia, where Tokyo shed more than one percent, while Hong Kong, Shanghai, Taipei, Manila, Bangkok, Jakarta and Wellington were in negative territory, but Singapore and Mumbai edged up.

Adding to the downbeat mood was a spike in Covid-19 cases in China following the country’s reopening after almost three years of strict containment measures.

While the move is expected to boost the world’s number two economy, there is a worry that businesses and China’s health system will be hit in the near term.

Still, Beijing flagged a number of measures aimed at kickstarting growth next year, including support for the beleaguered property sector.

An expected pick-up in Chinese demand helped propel oil prices higher, as did plans by the United States to refill its strategic oil reserves.

– Key figures around 1630 GMT –

New York – Dow: DOWN less than 0.1 percent at 32,897.24 points

EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.2 percent at 3,811.24

London – FTSE 100: UP 0.4 percent at 7,361.31 (close)

Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.4 percent at 13,942.87 (close)

Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.3 percent at 6,473.29 (close)

Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.1 percent at 27,237.64 (close)

Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.5 percent at 19,352.81 (close)

Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.9 percent at 3,107.11 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0614 from $1.0586 on Friday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2174 from $1.2148

Euro/pound: UP at 87.19 pence from 87.14 pence

Dollar/yen: UP at 136.98 yen from 136.60 yen

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.6 percent at $75.47 per barrel

Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.2 percent at $79.95 per barrel

burs-rl/lc

Tesco is facing a UK lawsuit brought by Burmese migrants in Thailand, who claim that one of the supermarket giant’s former clothing suppliers used their forced labour, lawyers said on Monday.

“Burmese migrants were made to work up to 99 hours a week on unlawful wages and in forced labour conditions at a Thailand factory making clothes for Tesco’s F&F fashion range,” said law firm Leigh Day, which represents the 130 claimants. 

The claimants are demanding compensation from Tesco and its Thai subsidiary at the time, Ek-Chai, which it sold in 2020.

They accuse the companies of being “unjustly enriched at the expense of the adult workers”.  

The suit will also target Intertek, the insurance and auditing group which inspected the factory where the alleged forced labour took place. 

If a settlement is not reached, the case will be pursued in the High Court in London, the legal firm warned in a statement. 

The workers were employed in the VK Garments factory in Mae Sot, northwest Thailand, between 2017 and 2020, where they cut, made and packed garments to be sold in Thailand. 

They were paid a maximum of £4.00 (4.60 euros) per day, and claim they were worked at a relentless pace for seven days a week and lived in tiny dormitories where they slept on a concrete floor. 

Tesco told AFP in a statement Monday that the claims were “incredibly serious” and that if it had “identified issues like this at the time they took place, we would have ended our relationship with this supplier immediately”.

While Tesco was not involved in the day-to-day running of the factory, it said “we would continue to urge” its former supplier “to reimburse employees for any wages they’re owed”. 

Compensation has so far only been awarded by the Thai courts, and only for severance pay. 

Intertek also said the allegations were serious, but it would not comment while legal proceedings were ongoing. 

Separately, 10 investment companies with assets totalling around £800 billion, including Schroders and Quilter Cheviot, on Monday signed a joint appeal calling for UK food retailers and the government to be increasingly vigilant about forced migrant labour in British agriculture. 

Many migrant workers in the UK have had to stump up large travel costs and “excessive fees to agents and middlemen”, often finding themselves saddled with debts, they warned. 

The UK’s main farming union warned in early December that the UK was heading for a food-supply crisis, mainly due to a lack of visas to bring in seasonal workers, who are in short supply after Brexit. 

The government announced on Friday plans to increase the number of seasonal visas available next year from a maximum of 40,000 to 45,000, with the possibility of an additional 10,000 if needed.

European equities rose Monday in light pre-Christmas trade, rebounding gently from last week’s losses that followed bumper interest rate hikes, but Wall Street and Asian markets failed to get into the festive mood.

Equity markets often experience a so-called Santa rally, when prices rise during the low-level holiday trading.

“Everyone, it seems, is waiting to see if Santa is going to come around, which leaves the market stuck between feelings of hope and angst,” said market analyst Patrick O’Hare at Briefing.com.

“Accordingly, there isn’t much happening at the broad market level this morning,” he added.

The blue-chip Dow opened marginally lower, with the broader S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite were flat.

Meanwhile in Europe, London rose 0.6 percent in afternoon trading, while Frankfurt and Paris both added 0.5 percent.

“Markets are grinding higher as some traders are optimistic about valuations which seem to them somewhat attractive,” AvaTrade analyst Naeem Aslam told AFP.

“We really don’t have much volume in markets as traders are away for holidays,” he added.

“Overall I think it’s going to be pretty subdued trading, given the lack of significant data to react to,” noted analyst Susannah Streeter at stockbroker Hargreaves Lansdown.

Asian indices, however, fell on lingering concern over a possible global recession caused by moves to fight inflation from top central banks.

Equities took a turn south last week after monetary policymakers around the world signalled that while price rises appeared to be stabilising, more work would be needed to get them under control.

All three main indexes on Wall Street ended sharply lower Friday after the Federal Reserve warned it would continue tightening monetary policy into 2023.

That was followed by similar warnings from the European Central Bank and Bank of England, while data suggested economies were feeling the pinch, dealing a blow to sentiment heading into the Christmas break.

“With no shortage of economic headwinds, investors struggle to find something cheerful about this holiday week after the two most dominant central banks cast a pall over the proceedings,” said SPI Asset Management’s Stephen Innes.

The US sell-off fed through to Asia, where Tokyo shed more than one percent, while Hong Kong, Shanghai, Taipei, Manila, Bangkok, Jakarta and Wellington were in negative territory, but Singapore and Mumbai edged up.

Adding to the downbeat mood was a spike in Covid-19 cases in China following the country’s reopening after almost three years of strict containment measures.

While the move is expected to boost the world’s number two economy, there is a worry that businesses and China’s health system will be hit in the near term.

Still, Beijing flagged a number of measures aimed at kickstarting growth next year, including support for the beleaguered property sector.

An expected pick-up in Chinese demand helped propel oil prices higher.

– Key figures around 1430 GMT –

London – FTSE 100: UP 0.6 percent at 7,374.60 points

Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.5 percent at 13,960.89

Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.5 percent at 6,482.31

EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.4 percent at 3,819.75

New York – Dow: DOWN less than 0.1 percent at 32,894.27

Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.1 percent at 27,237.64 (close)

Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.5 percent at 19,352.81 (close)

Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.9 percent at 3,107.11 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0610 from $1.0586 on Friday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2187 from $1.2148

Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.09 pence from 87.14 pence

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 136.59 yen from 136.60 yen

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.9 percent at $75.72 per barrel

Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.7 percent at $80.35 per barrel

burs/cw

Europe equities rose Monday in light pre-Christmas trade with many traders away for the festive break, rebounding gently from last week’s losses that followed bumper interest rate hikes.

“We really don’t have much volume in markets as traders are away for holidays,” AvaTrade analyst Naeem Aslam told AFP.

“Markets are grinding higher as some traders are optimistic about valuations which seem to them somewhat attractive.”

Heading into the afternoon, London rose 0.5 percent, while Frankfurt and Paris each won 0.4 percent in value.

“Overall I think it’s going to be pretty subdued trading, given the lack of significant data to react to,” noted analyst Susannah Streeter at stockbroker Hargreaves Lansdown.

Asian indices however fell on lingering concern over a possible global recession caused by moves to fight inflation from top central banks.

Equities took a turn south last week after monetary policymakers around the world signalled that while price rises appeared to be stabilising, more work would be needed to get them under control.

All three main indexes on Wall Street ended sharply lower Friday after the Federal Reserve warned it would continue tightening monetary policy into 2023.

That was followed by similar warnings from the European Central Bank and Bank of England, while data suggested economies were feeling the pinch, dealing a blow to sentiment heading into the Christmas break.

“With no shortage of economic headwinds, investors struggle to find something cheerful about this holiday week after the two most dominant central banks cast a pall over the proceedings,” said SPI Asset Management’s Stephen Innes.

The US sell-off fed through to Asia, where Tokyo shed more than one percent, while Hong Kong, Shanghai, Taipei, Manila, Bangkok, Jakarta and Wellington were in negative territory, but Singapore and Mumbai edged up.

Adding to the downbeat mood was a spike in Covid-19 cases in China following the country’s reopening after almost three years of strict containment measures.

While the move is expected to boost the world’s number two economy, there is a worry that businesses and China’s health system will be hit in the near term.

Still, Beijing flagged a number of measures aimed at kickstarting growth next year, including support for the beleaguered property sector.

An expected pick-up in Chinese demand helped propel oil prices moderately higher.

– Key figures around 1200 GMT –

London – FTSE 100: UP 0.5 percent at 7,365.99 points

Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.4 percent at 13,945.14

Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.4 percent at 6,481.03

EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.3 percent at 3,815.94

Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.1 percent at 27,237.64 (close)

Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.5 percent at 19,352.81 (close)

Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.9 percent at 3,107.11 (close)

New York – Dow: DOWN 0.9 percent at 32,920.46 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0607 from $1.0586 on Friday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2189 from $1.2148

Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.02 pence from 87.14 pence

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 136.24 yen from 136.60 yen

West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.6 percent at $74.74 per barrel

Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.7 percent at $79.62 per barrel

Asian markets fell on Monday as traders weighed the prospect of a global recession caused by central bank moves to fight inflation.

Equities took a turn south last week after monetary policymakers around the world signalled that while price rises appeared to be stabilising, more work would be needed to get them under control.

All three main indexes on Wall Street ended sharply lower Friday after the Federal Reserve warned that it would continue tightening monetary policy into 2023.

That was followed by similar warnings from the European Central Bank and Bank of England, while data suggested economies were feeling the pinch, dealing a blow to sentiment heading into the Christmas break.

“With no shortage of economic headwinds, investors struggle to find something cheerful about this holiday week after the two most dominant central banks cast a pall over the proceedings,” said SPI Asset Management’s Stephen Innes.

The sell-off in New York fed through to Asia, where Tokyo shed more than one percent, while Hong Kong, Shanghai, Taipei, Manila, Bangkok, Jakarta and Wellington were all in negative territory.

However, Singapore and Mumbai edged up, while London, Paris and Frankfurt opened higher.

“A Santa rally looks doubtful given elevated growth risks and hawkish central banks rhetoric,” said National Australia Bank’s Tapas Strickland.

Adding to the downbeat mood was a spike in Covid-19 cases in China following the country’s reopening after almost three years of strict containment measures.

While the move is expected to boost the world’s number two economy, there is a worry that businesses and China’s health system will be hit in the near term.

Still, Beijing flagged a number of measures aimed at kickstarting growth next year, including support for the beleaguered property sector.

Sylvia Jablonski of Defiance ETFs had an upbeat outlook.

She told Bloomberg Radio that “the market will look through the expectations of a future recession at some point and come back in because equities are starting to look cheaper and cheaper as we go along here”.

An expected pick-up in demand from the country helped drive a rally in oil prices, with both main contracts up more than one percent.

– Key figures around 0820 GMT –

Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.1 percent at 27,237.64 (close)

Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.5 percent at 19,352.81 (close)

Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.9 percent at 3,107.11 (close)

London – FTSE 100: UP 0.4 percent at 7,355.10

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0633 from $1.0589 on Friday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2201 from $1.2140

Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.13 pence from 87.22 pence

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 135.83 yen from 136.68 yen

West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.4 percent at $74.58 per barrel

Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.5 percent at $79.46 per barrel

New York – Dow: DOWN 0.9 percent at 32,920.46 (close)

Asian markets fell on Monday as traders weighed the prospect of a global recession caused by central bank moves to fight inflation.

Equities took a turn south last week after monetary policymakers around the world signalled that while price rises appeared to be stabilising, more work would be needed to get them under control.

All three main indexes on Wall Street ended sharply lower Friday after the Federal Reserve warned that it would continue tightening monetary policy into 2023.

That was followed by similar warnings from the European Central Bank and Bank of England, while data suggested economies were feeling the pinch, dealing a blow to sentiment heading into the Christmas break.

“With no shortage of economic headwinds, investors struggle to find something cheerful about this holiday week after the two most dominant central banks cast a pall over the proceedings,” said SPI Asset Management’s Stephen Innes.

The sell-off in New York fed through to Asia, where Tokyo shed more than one percent, while Hong Kong, Shanghai, Taipei, Seoul, Manila, Jakarta and Wellington were all in negative territory.

“A Santa rally looks doubtful given elevated growth risks and hawkish central banks rhetoric,” said National Australia Bank’s Tapas Strickland.

Adding to the downbeat mood was a spike in Covid-19 cases in China following the country’s reopening after almost three years of strict containment measures.

While the move is expected to boost the world’s number two economy, there is a worry that businesses and the country’s health system will be hit in the near term.

Still, Beijing flagged a number of measures aimed at kickstarting growth next year, including support for the beleaguered property sector.

However, Sylvia Jablonski of Defiance ETFs had an upbeat outlook.

She told Bloomberg Radio that “the market will look through the expectations of a future recession at some point and come back in because equities are starting to look cheaper and cheaper as we go along here”.

An expected pick-up in demand from the country helped drive a rally in oil prices, with both main contracts up more than one percent.

– Key figures around 0230 GMT –

Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.1 percent at 27,221.29 (break)

Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.9 percent at 19,282.35

Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.1 percent at 3,134.33

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0607 from $1.0589 on Friday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2186 from $1.2140

Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.02 pence from 87.22 pence

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 136.06 yen from 136.68 yen

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.4 percent at $75.32 per barrel

Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.4 percent at $80.17 per barrel

New York – Dow: DOWN 0.9 percent at 32,920.46 (close)

London – FTSE 100: DOWN 1.3 percent at 7,332.12 (closing)