Monday, July 9, 2012

Growth, European worries send global shares lower

US stocks slipped in light trading on Monday, weighed down by weak economic data from Asia and signs of economic trouble in Europe, underscored by higher Spanish and Italian bond yields.

The Dow Jones industrial average ended down 36.18 points, or 0.28 percent, at 12,736.29. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 2.22 points, or 0.16 percent, at 1,352.46. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 5.56 points, or 0.19 percent, at 2,931.77.

European equities fell for a fourth straight session and were poised for further weakness as a growing batch of gloomy economic and corporate data compounded concerns about European authorities' response to the crisis.

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares closed down 0.4 percent at 1,030.09 points in volume that was 76 percent of its 90-day average, while the euro zone's Euro STOXX 50 shed 0.3 percent to 2,227.91 points after falling 3.7 percent in the previous three days.

In Asia, Japan's Nikkei share average suffered its biggest fall in over a month as surprisingly weak Japanese machinery orders fanned worries about faltering global growth sparked by sluggish US jobs figures.

The Nikkei fell 1.4 percent to 8,896.88, posting its daily biggest fall since June 8 and slipping for the third straight session. The broader Topix index dropped 1.0 percent to 763.93.