Investing.com – Asian stock markets were broadly lower on Monday, as worries over a potential U.S. sovereign debt default and ongoing concerns over the euro zone’s debt crisis prompted investors to shun riskier assets.
During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index shed 0.2%, South Korea's Kospi Composite sank 0.69%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index was closed for a public holiday.
U.S. President Barack Obama said over the weekend that the U.S. government was “running out of time” in regards to negotiations over lifting the country’s USD14.3 trillion debt ceiling before an August 2 deadline.
Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Larry Summers said that a U.S. debt default would cause panic throughout the financial system and long-term uncertainty.
Ratings agencies Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s both warned last week that a failure to raise the debt limit in time would result in a downgrade in the credit rating of the world’s largest economy.
Meanwhile, Euro zone finance ministers were to meet Thursday to focus on “the financial stability of the euro area as a whole and the future financing of the Greek program,” according to the president of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy.
The European Banking Authority said Friday that eight banks out of the region’s 90 top lenders failed its stress tests, with a combined capital shortfall of EUR2.5 billion.
The EBA said 16 banks narrowly passed the stress tests. Of the banks that failed the tests, five were in Spain, two in Greece and one in Austria, while all of the region’s biggest firms passed the test.
Property developers led losses in Hong Kong amid concerns Beijing would increase its efforts to curb rising property prices.
Sino Land saw shares slump 1.8%, Henderson Land Development dropped 1.15%, while shares in Sun Hung Kai Properties fell 1.05%.
The outlook for European stock markets was downbeat. The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a loss of 1.05%, France’s CAC 40 futures dropped 1.3%, the FTSE 100 futures declined 0.9%, while Germany's DAX futures sank 1%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish a government report on the balance of domestic and foreign investments.
During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index shed 0.2%, South Korea's Kospi Composite sank 0.69%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index was closed for a public holiday.
U.S. President Barack Obama said over the weekend that the U.S. government was “running out of time” in regards to negotiations over lifting the country’s USD14.3 trillion debt ceiling before an August 2 deadline.
Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Larry Summers said that a U.S. debt default would cause panic throughout the financial system and long-term uncertainty.
Ratings agencies Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s both warned last week that a failure to raise the debt limit in time would result in a downgrade in the credit rating of the world’s largest economy.
Meanwhile, Euro zone finance ministers were to meet Thursday to focus on “the financial stability of the euro area as a whole and the future financing of the Greek program,” according to the president of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy.
The European Banking Authority said Friday that eight banks out of the region’s 90 top lenders failed its stress tests, with a combined capital shortfall of EUR2.5 billion.
The EBA said 16 banks narrowly passed the stress tests. Of the banks that failed the tests, five were in Spain, two in Greece and one in Austria, while all of the region’s biggest firms passed the test.
Property developers led losses in Hong Kong amid concerns Beijing would increase its efforts to curb rising property prices.
Sino Land saw shares slump 1.8%, Henderson Land Development dropped 1.15%, while shares in Sun Hung Kai Properties fell 1.05%.
The outlook for European stock markets was downbeat. The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a loss of 1.05%, France’s CAC 40 futures dropped 1.3%, the FTSE 100 futures declined 0.9%, while Germany's DAX futures sank 1%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish a government report on the balance of domestic and foreign investments.