Asian Stocks End Mostly Lower; Europe Slips

BY Jeremiah Marquez

HONG KONG -- Most Asian stock markets extended their losses Wednesday as the global rally continued to lose steam amid concerns about the pace of any economic recovery. European shares also faltered.

More signs of economic weakness in the U.S. inspired caution among investors, while uncertainty over whether crude oil could punch through eight-month highs near $73 a barrel in the coming days weighed on some Asian resources companies.

With some indexes up more than 50% since March on expectations of an economic turnaround this year, markets have begun to stumble amid worries stock prices have gotten too far ahead of economic fundamentals.

News that American industrial production fell by a bigger-than-expected 1.1% last month gave investors in Asia, as in the U.S. Tuesday, even more reason to hold back. It marked the seventh straight monthly drop and distracted traders from more upbeat figures on home construction, building permits and inflation.

"The market is losing a little bit of momentum after the rally," said Winson Fong, managing director at SG Asset Management in Hong Kong, which oversees about $2 billion in equities in Asia. "Some sort of the healthy correction is expected in the near term. But I think the economic fundamentals will catch up."

In Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.5%, Germany's DAX was down 0.7% and France's CAC-40 shed 0.8%. U.S. stock futures pointed to modest gains Wednesday on Wall Street.

In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index lost 0.5%, though it managed to trim its losses after a volatile session. South Korea's Kospi shed 0.6%. Australia's benchmark fell 1.5%.