0 Asian markets fall after US, Europe declines

Asian markets fell Tuesday following declines on Wall Street and in Europe amid concern about the political outlook for Spain and Italy. Oil prices fell amid jitters about the ability of European governments to keep their finances stable. The regional heavyweight, Japan's Nikkei 225, dropped 1.3 percent to 11,116.44. China's Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.6 percent to 2,413.16 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng tumbled 1.6 percent to 23,311.01. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.4 percent at 4,890.40. 

"Caution will prevail in the near term," said Credit Agricole CIB in a report. Benchmarks in Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia and Thailand also fell. In China, the economy is limping out of its deepest slump since the 2008 global crisis but optimism has been tempered by warnings the recovery could be threatened if trade or investment weakens. A business group, the China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing, said its index of service industry activity rose marginally to 56.2 in January from 56.1 in December. 

The measure of new orders declined, which "casts doubt on the strength of the recovery in the service sector," said Nomura economist Zhiwei Zhang in a report. In Hong Kong, Sinopec Corp. plummeted 3.9 percent after the Chinese state-owned oil company, Asia's biggest refiner, said it was raising $3.1 billion through a share placement. Concern over Europe's debt has eased but an upcoming election in Italy this month and a corruption scandal in Spain have rekindled concerns about their finances.

source : the jakarta post