Asian Markets Stay Down As Recession Fears Rise

Asian shares were mostly lower Monday, dogged by persisting worries over a possible recession and the risk of a default on the US national debt. US futures and oil prices also fell, Elaine Kurtenbach reported for the Associated Press (AP).

Photo Insert: The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) was down 0.8% in early trading.

Shares in Thailand fell after the country’s main opposition parties easily bested other contenders in an election result that fulfilled many voters’ hopes of a chance for change after nine years under a former coup-leading general.

The SET was down 0.8% in early trading. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 bucked the regional trend, gaining 0.8% to 29,611.52.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index added 0.1% to 19,654.68 and the Shanghai Composite index sank 0.9% to 3,241.58. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.2% to 7,241.70, while the Kospi in South Korea shed 0.2% to 2,470.15.

The S&P 500 dipped 0.2% to 4,124.08, capping a sixth straight week where it moved less than 1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped less than 0.1% to 33,300.62, while the Nasdaq composite lost 0.4% to 12,284.74.

In other trading Monday, US benchmark crude oil gave up 47 cents to $69.57 per barrel. It lost 83 cents on Friday to $70.04 per barrel.

Brent crude, the pricing basis for international trading, shed 53 cents to $73.64 per barrel. The US dollar rose to 136.21 Japanese yen from 135.69 yen on Friday. The euro was trading at $1.0858, up from $1.0854.

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