Growth concerns weigh on stocks; dollar at fresh seven-month high

Oil rises after IEA reports sharp drop in investment

The news will add to pressure on Beijing as it struggles to transform the nation’s growth model to a more stable one driven by domestic consumption and away from decades of export reliance and state investment.

It also brought an end to a five-day rally in Shanghai, which had been boosted Monday by news that authorities will resume initial public offerings this month after a four-month hiatus caused by the summer stock rout.

The market ended 0.2 percent down — although it pared early hefty losses — and Hong Kong dropped 1.4 percent, while Sydney, where several firms that rely on Chinese trade are listed, closed 0.4 percent lower.

However, there was some respite for emerging market currencies, which edged up slightly after being hammered Monday by last week’s better-thanexpected US jobs data that ramped up expectations of a Fed rate rise next month.

Asia’s retreat followed big losses on Wall Street, where the Dow, Nasdaq and S&P 500 each fell one percent, while there were heavier losses in Frankfurt and Paris.

In Mumbai shares in India’s largest carrier IndiGo soared almost 18 percent on their debut, with confident traders betting on the country’s growing appetite for air travel.

Oil Oil prices rose on Tuesday after the International Energy Agency(IEA) noted unprecedented declines in investment, though the broader picture of an oversupplied market limited any gains.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was up 0.25 cents at $47.44 a barrel by 1437 GMT, having fallen for four trading days in a row. US crude rose 0.30 cents to $44.17 a barrel.

The IEA said oil was unlikely to return to $80 a barrel before the end of the decade, despite cuts in investment, as annual demand growth struggles to top 1 million barrels per day.

In its World Energy Outlook, the IEA also estimated that investment in oil would decline more than 20 percent this year and the trend would continue into 2016.

Gold Gold remained mired near a threemonth low on Tuesday as the dollar rose towards a seven-month peak on prospects the US Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in December.

A forecast-beating US October employment report on Friday pushed up bets the Fed will increase rates for the first time in almost a decade, sending non-interest-paying gold to $1,084.90 an ounce, the lowest level since August.

Spot gold was up 0.2 percent at $1,093.96 an ounce by 1248 GMT, while US gold for December delivery gained $5.20 to $1,093.30 an ounce.

Although bullion ended an eight-day losing run on Monday, the technical picture has weakened and the next support is set at the 5-1/2-year trough of $1,077 hit in July, analysts said.