Asian Markets Descend Wall of Worry

By V. PHANI KUMAR in Hong KongAnd VIRGINIA HARRISON in SydneyMost Asian markets surrendered gains to end lower Monday as worries about the European debt crisis <a href="http://wk.putianb2b.com/"><strong>网赚论坛 </strong></a> and global economic outlook kept investors on edge. "Weak growth outlook remains the headwind for risky assets," said Prakash Sakpal, an economist at ING Financial Markets Research. "We expect no lasting respite from the ongoing risk aversion until a clear direction on additional [U.S. Federal Reserve] stimulus emerges and until [there's a] significant reduction in euro-zone debt anxiety." Japan's Nikkei Stock Average ended 1% lower at 8623.13, as hopes that authorities would intervene to curb the yen's strength pulled the currency back from a postwar record level against the dollar, but not enough to lift shares of most exporters. South Korea's Kospi slid 2% to 1710.70, China's Shanghai Composite dropped 0.7% to 2515.86, Australia's S&amp;P/ASX 200 index lost 0.5% to 4082.3 and Taiwan's Taiex fell 0.4% to 7312.59. On the plus side, India's Sen###### gained 1.2% to 16341.70, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index overcame a drop in mainland China property developers—which skidded after China Resources Land's earnings fell short of some analysts' expectations—to finish a roller-coaster session with 0.5% gain, to 19486.87. "The markets are worried about liquidity in Europe," said Linus Yip, strategist at First Shanghai Securities in Hong Kong, calling the worries "understandable"—though saying there is little evidence at this point that liquidity is drying up there The <a href="http://wk.putianb2b.com/"><strong>网赚项目 </strong></a> higher finish in Hong Kong came as European stocks advanced in early trading and as Dow Jones Industrial Average futures climbed in electronic trading. The DJIA futures are currently up 67. Among index heavyweight shares, HSBC Holdings rose 2% to recover some recent losses, <a href="http://wk.putianb2b.com/"><strong>广州兼职 </strong></a> while China Mobile added 2.9%, benefiting from its low valuation and its appeal as a defensive stock. But overall gains were restricted. China Resources Land, which tumbled 7.4% after first-half results disappointed some analysts, dragged some other Chinese property developers down with it: China Overseas Land &amp; Investment fell 6.5% and Shimao Property Holdings fell 3.7%. China Unicom Hong Kong lost 4.7% after the mobile-service provider's 3G subscriber additions in July fell short of expectations. First Shanghai's Mr. Yip said expectations that the July consumer-price-index reading will be high were "one reason" for the high volatility in the Hong Kong market Monday. Korean shipbuilders remained under selling pressure on worries about global demand, with Daewoo Shipbuilding &amp; Marine Engineering losing 4.9% and Hyundai Heavy Industries shedding 4.4%. In Tokyo, the U.S. dollar rebounded from Friday's postwar low, but continued to trade around ¥77.00. Several exporters were pressured by worries the local currency would affect their earnings and on fears about the global economic outlook. Toyota Motor and Honda Motor each shed 2.5%, while Sony gave up 1%. In the resources sector, gold miners rode higher on the back of surging prices, with Newcrest Mining climbing 1.7% in Sydney, Zhaojin Mining Industry gaining 0.9% in Hong Kong and Shandong Gold-Mining edging <a href="http://www.436100.info/view.php?id=103428"><strong>61% Another Earth</strong></a> 1% higher in Shanghai. But several energy producers declined on weaker crude-oil prices: Inpex dropped 3.9% in Tokyo, Woodside Petroleum shed 1.1% in Sydney. In Sydney, Bluescope Steel shares fell 5.7% after the company said it would close a blast furnace and abandon its export business—meaning a cut of around 1,000 jobs—as it swung to a fiscal-year loss.