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Thursday, September 14, 2017, 16:58
Global markets fall after disappointing China data
By Associated Press
Thursday, September 14, 2017, 16:58 By Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea - Global stocks were mostly lower on Thursday after data showed retail sales and industrial output growth slowed in China.

KEEPING SCORE: European stocks got off to a weak start. Britain's FTSE 100 was flat at 7,380.66. France's CAC dipped 0.1 percent to 5,213.98 and Germany's DAX fell 0.2 percent to 12,525.72. Futures augured a tepid start on Wall Street. S&P Futures lost 0.1 percent while Dow futures were flat.

ASIA'S DAY: Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.3 percent to 19,807.44. China's Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.4 percent to 3,371.43, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 0.4 percent to 27,777.20. But South Korea's Kospi gained 0.7 percent to 2,377.66. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.1 percent at 5,738.70. Stocks in Southeast Asia were mixed.

CHINA: China's National Bureau of Statistics said the world's second-largest economy saw 6 percent annual growth in its industrial output in August, slower than 6.4 percent growth in July. Retail sales expanded 10.1 percent on year in August, compared with 10.4 percent in July, it said. The figures missed expectations and suggested that China's economy continued to cool.

ANALYST'S TAKE: "Growth in electricity, steel and cement output all slowed, as did production of key consumer products including cars and mobile phones," Julian Evans-Pritchard, an economist at Capital Economics, said in a report on the Chinese data. "But the main culprit was weaker domestic demand."

DATA WATCH: Investors are also waiting for the latest updates on the US economy before the Federal Reserve meeting due next week. The US Labor Department is scheduled to release reports on consumer prices for August and the number of people who applied for unemployment benefits last week.

OIL: Benchmark US crude added 4 cents to US$49.34 per barrel in New York. The contract rose US$1.07, or 2.2 percent, to close at US$49.30 a barrel on Wednesday. Brent crude, used to price international oils, gained 17 cents to US$55.33 per barrel in London. It added 89 cents, or 1.6 percent, to finish at US$55.16 a barrel in the previous session.

CURRENCIES: The dollar fell to 110.42 yen from 110.49 yen. The euro rose to US$1.1903 from US$1.1884.

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