Asian Stocks End Mixed; Europe Gains

By Stephen Wright

BANGKOK -- World markets were in a holding pattern Tuesday, with stock benchmarks narrowly mixed as investors looked to earnings as a possible antidote to pessimism about a quick economic recovery.

Last week's gloomy unemployment figures from the U.S. and Europe continued to dampen sentiment, keeping the breaks on the massive rally in world markets that began in early March on hopes the recession had run its course.

Oil slid below $64 after also tumbling the day before, keeping a lid on commodity stocks.

There is only a thin schedule of data this week from the world's largest economy but the start of the second-quarter earnings reporting season will provide clues as to whether companies have seen the worst of the recession. U.S. aluminum giant Alcoa(AA Quote) opens earnings season on Wednesday.

Trading volumes have been thin lately as investors ponder whether they read too much into signs the global economy was stabilizing, said Song Seng Wun, head of research at CIMB in Singapore.

"Now it's a question of taking a step back and seeing to what extent we are getting sustainable growth," he said. "Confidence could deteriorate further because of the worsening job market in the U.S."

As trading got underway in Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.2%, while Germany's DAX gained 0.01%. France's CAC 40 rose about 0.02%. Stock futures pointed to modest losses Tuesday on Wall Street.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 stock average lost ground for a fifth day, falling 0.3% to 9,647.79, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 0.7%. South Korea's Kospi rose 0.4% to 1,434.20.