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BANGKOK – Asian stock markets fell Monday after U.S. consumer confidence plunged and corporate results fell short of expectations, signs the world's biggest economy may be in danger of falling back into recession.
Oil prices fell slightly to below $76 a barrel as traders eyed falling global stocks markets ahead of more key corporate earnings reports this week. The dollar rose against the euro and the yen.
A volatile stock market, near-double-digit unemployment and a stalled housing market led to a drop in U.S. consumer confidence in July, to its lowest point in nearly a year. That resulted in a chill on spending — bad news for Asian economies whose exporters rely on America as a key market.
"That really shows that people don't have faith in the future. People are afraid of losing their jobs and are putting off buying things," said Francis Lun, general manager of Fulbright Securities Ltd. in Hong Kong. "America is in danger of falling into recession. If the economy does not pick up, it will go the way of Europe."
Investors also were shaken up after witnessing Wall Street tumble on Friday, with all major U.S. indexes losing 2.5 percent or more. Second-quarter results from Citigroup Inc. and Bank of America Corp. disappointed investors because revenue fell even as the banks generated an increase in profits.
One exception in Asia was the Chinese market. Lun said the Shanghai benchmark — up 0.9 percent or 21.09 points to 2,445.36 — may have enjoyed a lift from speculation that the government was committed to supporting the Agricultural Bank of China's initial public offering to prevent it from dropping below its offer price.
Elsewhere, markets were down. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index shed 197.75 points, or 1 percent, to 20,052.41 and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 1.3 percent to 4,366.20. Seoul's Kospi fell 0.4 percent to 1,731.30.
Markets in Japan were closed for a national holiday.
In Seoul trade, major banks lost ground, with KB Financial Group Inc. down 1.1 percent and rival Woori Finance Holdings Co. falling 3.2 percent.
Australia's Aquarius Platinum Ltd. tumbled nearly 25 percent amid worries over the potential impact of new mining safety rules by South Africa.
In New York on Friday, the Dow fell 261.41, or 2.5 percent, to 10,097.90. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 31.60, or 2.9 percent, to 1,064.88. The Nasdaq composite index fell 70.03, or 3.1 percent, to 2,179.05.
In currencies, the dollar rose to 86.66 yen from 86.56 yen. The euro fell to $1.2905 from $1.2929.
Benchmark crude for August delivery was down 24 cents to $75.77 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract lost 61 cents to settle at $76.01 on Friday.
