Overseas Trading: Hong Kong Leads Asia Lower; Europe Slips on IEA Warning

The disappearance of a high-profile investor weighed on stocks in China and Hong Kong, while fresh losses for oil are hitting Europe

Dec 11, 2015 at 8:26 AM

It was another generally bearish session in Asia today, with a 1.1% drop for Hong Kong's Hang Seng pacing the decline. Traders were rattled by news of the disappearance of billionaire Fosun Group co-founder Guo Guangchang, with local media reporting that the executive was spotted being taken away by police at the Shanghai airport. China's Shanghai Composite settled 0.6% lower, while South Korea's Kospi slipped 0.2%. Elsewhere, Japan's Nikkei bucked the regional slump, gaining nearly 1% on strength in exporters.

Oil's ongoing slump continues to take its toll on European stocks, with Brent crude futures down 1.4% at last look. Sentiment has been further rattled today by an International Energy Agency (IEA) warning that persistent oversupply will dent global oil demand into 2016. At midday, the German DAX has shed nearly 2%, the French CAC 40 is off 1.5%, and London's FTSE 100 is 1.3% lower.

Overseas markets 1211

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