SEOUL, South Korea: Asian stock markets mostly fell on Friday after a decline on Wall Street and ahead of the release of closely watched US employment figures.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index, Asia's biggest market, fell 1.2% to 8,955.30, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index declined 1.3% to 20,313.99.
The U.S. Labor Department announces figures for employment and the jobless rate in August later Friday. Employers are expected to have added 93,000 jobs. Such a figure would not significantly dent the current unemployment rate of 9.1%.
Fears that the U.S. economy is in danger of falling back into recession have dogged the markets, though recent indicators _ including gains in auto sales, manufacturing and consumer spending _ point to steady, though not strong, growth.
On the negative side, however, consumer confidence plunged in August to a two-year low and a key category that tracks business investment plans declined 0.9% in July.
``This is a big number,'' said Jackson Wong, vice president at Tanrich Securities in Hong Kong, referring to the jobs report. ``The market is still very cautious ahead of the non-farm payrolls data.''
Investors watch the report as a key barometer of the health of the world's largest economy, which despite its recovery from the worst of the sub-prime mortgage crisis and the global financial meltdown has struggled to create enough jobs to sharply bring down the unemployment rate.
Mainland China's Shanghai Composite Index fell 1.3% to 2,523.30, while South Korea's Kospi moved 0.7% lower to 1,868.77. Markets in Australia, New Zealand, Thailand and Singapore also fell.
Benchmarks in the Philippines and India, however, bucked the losing trend to gain less than 1% each.
In New York on Thursday, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 1% to 11,493.57, giving up early gains of as much as 103 points and snapping a four day winning streak.
Bank stocks led the market lower after regulators announced enforcement measures against a former subsidiary of Goldman Sachs over mortgage and foreclosure practices. Jitters ahead of the release of the government's monthly jobs report also hurt sentiment.
Broader indices also fell. The Standard & Poor's 500 index declined 1.2% to 1,204.42. The technology-focused Nasdaq composite index lost 1.3% to 2,546.04.
In currencies, the dollar strengthened slightly to 76.83 yen from 76.78 yen late in New York on Thursday. New Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda named Jun Azumi, a 49-year-old former journalist, as finance minister Friday as he launches his Cabinet. Azumi will be in charge of currency policy as Japan, the world's third-largest economy, struggles with the effects of a strong yen that remains near an all-time high against the dollar.
The euro, meanwhile, fell to $1.4266 from $1.4273.
Benchmark oil for October delivery was down 20 cents to $88.73 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 12 cents to settle at $88.93 per barrel on the Nymex on Thursday.
In London, Brent crude for October delivery was down 27 cents at $114.02 on the ICE Futures exchange.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index, Asia's biggest market, fell 1.2% to 8,955.30, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index declined 1.3% to 20,313.99.
The U.S. Labor Department announces figures for employment and the jobless rate in August later Friday. Employers are expected to have added 93,000 jobs. Such a figure would not significantly dent the current unemployment rate of 9.1%.
Fears that the U.S. economy is in danger of falling back into recession have dogged the markets, though recent indicators _ including gains in auto sales, manufacturing and consumer spending _ point to steady, though not strong, growth.
On the negative side, however, consumer confidence plunged in August to a two-year low and a key category that tracks business investment plans declined 0.9% in July.
``This is a big number,'' said Jackson Wong, vice president at Tanrich Securities in Hong Kong, referring to the jobs report. ``The market is still very cautious ahead of the non-farm payrolls data.''
Investors watch the report as a key barometer of the health of the world's largest economy, which despite its recovery from the worst of the sub-prime mortgage crisis and the global financial meltdown has struggled to create enough jobs to sharply bring down the unemployment rate.
Mainland China's Shanghai Composite Index fell 1.3% to 2,523.30, while South Korea's Kospi moved 0.7% lower to 1,868.77. Markets in Australia, New Zealand, Thailand and Singapore also fell.
Benchmarks in the Philippines and India, however, bucked the losing trend to gain less than 1% each.
In New York on Thursday, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 1% to 11,493.57, giving up early gains of as much as 103 points and snapping a four day winning streak.
Bank stocks led the market lower after regulators announced enforcement measures against a former subsidiary of Goldman Sachs over mortgage and foreclosure practices. Jitters ahead of the release of the government's monthly jobs report also hurt sentiment.
Broader indices also fell. The Standard & Poor's 500 index declined 1.2% to 1,204.42. The technology-focused Nasdaq composite index lost 1.3% to 2,546.04.
In currencies, the dollar strengthened slightly to 76.83 yen from 76.78 yen late in New York on Thursday. New Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda named Jun Azumi, a 49-year-old former journalist, as finance minister Friday as he launches his Cabinet. Azumi will be in charge of currency policy as Japan, the world's third-largest economy, struggles with the effects of a strong yen that remains near an all-time high against the dollar.
The euro, meanwhile, fell to $1.4266 from $1.4273.
Benchmark oil for October delivery was down 20 cents to $88.73 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 12 cents to settle at $88.93 per barrel on the Nymex on Thursday.
In London, Brent crude for October delivery was down 27 cents at $114.02 on the ICE Futures exchange.
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