Shares Fall in Asia and Europe, Dimming Hopes for Quick Rebound

Tokio-Japan (Dec 10)  A sell-off across Asian and European markets on Monday risked setting a gloomy tone for the week, as more negative news highlighted a slowdown in global growth and rising trade tensions between the United States and China.

Major markets from Tokyo to Hong Kong and Shanghai finished the day lower, with losses greater than 1 percent in many of them. In Germany, stocks fell to a two-year low at the start of trading. Futures that predict Wall Street’s opening suggested investors in the United States could face another volatile day.

While the drops in Asia and Europe were moderate, they reflected mounting signs that growth is slowing around the world.

In Japan, revised economic figures showed the country’s economy shrank more in the third quarter than initially reported. In China, trade data released over the weekend revealed a sharp slowdown in November. The lower-than-expected numbers indicate growth weakness and the growing impact of the trade war on China’s domestic economy, according to analysts at UBS, the Swiss bank.

TheNewYorkTimes