Growing concerns over tightening credit conditions in China and Federal Reserve policy in the U.S. are sending world stocks lower Monday afternoon.
“In Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.2 percent to 6,040.44 and France's CAC-40 slid 1.6 percent to 3,599.05. Germany's DAX was down 0.9 percent to 7,717.43,” the Associated Press reports.
“Mainland China's Shanghai Composite Index plummeted 5 percent to 1,968.51 while the smaller Shenzhen Composite Index plunged 6.1 percent to 881.87.
“Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 2.2 percent to 19,813.98. Japan's Nikkei 225 index, the regional heavyweight, fell 1.3 percent to 13,062.78. South Korea's Kospi lost 1.3 percent to 1,799.01. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 shed 1.5 percent at 4,666.50,” the report adds.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down 1.5 percent, to roughly 14,576 at 12:00 p.m. ET:
The Standard & Poor's index fell 29 points to 1,563:
The Nasdaq composite fell 55 points to 3,302:
“Shanghai's stock index endured its biggest loss in four years after the country's central bank allowed commercial rates to spike higher,” the AP report continues.
“But the higher lending rates could also hurt economic growth. The impact for stock markets would be all the greater if the U.S. Federal Reserve tightens its own ultra-loose monetary policy over the coming months,” the report adds.
Meanwhile, gold is still struggling:
Markets are trying to cope with the economic news:
--
[related]
Follow Becket Adams (@BecketAdams) on Twitter
Featured image AP photo.
