TOKYO (AP) — Global shares were mixed Tuesday, with Chinese benchmarks falling after Moody’s Investor Service downgraded China’s sovereign debt rating, reflecting concern that the country’s property crisis is spilling into its local government and private financing.
France’s CAC 40 added 0.2% in early trading to 7,348.10, while Germany’s DAX rose nearly 0.1% to 16,419.22. Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.2% to 7,499.67.
The future for the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.3% and that for the S&P 500 was 0.2% lower.
In Asian trading, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 1.9% to 16,327.86, while the Shanghai Composite lost 1.7% to 2,972.30 as worries flared over weakness in the Chinese economy.
Credit rating agency Moody’s cut its outlook for Chinese sovereign bonds to negative on Tuesday, citing risks from a slowing economy and a crisis in its property sector.
Moody’s said the downgrade, its first for China since 2017, reflects risks from financing troubles of local and regional governments and state-owned enterprises.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 slipped 1.4% to finish at 32,775.82. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.9% to 7,061.60. South Korea’s Kospi shed 0.8% to 2,494.28.
A key report on Japanese inflation showed core consumer prices in Tokyo, which excludes volatile food prices, rose 2.3% from a year ago, slowing from previous months’ increases.
Hopes that inflation is easing enough to allow the Federal Reserve to stop raising interest rates have pushed shares higher in recent weeks. Investors are also hoping that the economy remains strong enough to avoid a recession.
This week will bring several key updates on the economy.
The Institute for Supply Management will release its November report on the services sector on Tuesday. The sector is a key component in the U.S. economy and accounts for the majority of the nation’s jobs. The report could provide more insight into consumer spending and the jobs market.
The government will release its October update on job openings on Tuesday and a weekly report on applications for unemployment benefits on Thursday.
The government’s monthly jobs report for November is due on Friday. Analysts polled by FactSet expect U.S. employers to have added 175,000 jobs last month. They forecast that the unemployment rate remained steady at 3.9%.
In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude added 60 cents to $73.64 a barrel. It fell 1.4% on Monday. Brent crude, the international standard, picked up 66 cents to $78.69 a barrel.
In currency trading, the U.S. dollar fell to 146.90 Japanese yen from 147.19 yen. The euro cost $1.0828, down from $1.0838.
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