European markets open lower after Paris attack

SYDNEY, Nov 16 ― Asian stocks fell as the region’s equity markets began trading for the first time since attacks in Paris killed least 129 people. It racked up a 3 percent loss last week.

“The contraction in year-to-date industrial production growth widened to 4.4 percent in September”.

Before the assault, Wall Street had marked its worst week since August, with major USA indexes all shedding more than 1 percent after a spate of mixed economic data. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost almost 0.7 percent to 5,017.30.

The Euro, however, fell to a six-month low of 1.68 to the United States dollar.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.7% and South Korea’s Kospi lost 1.5%. The Thai baht and the Singapore dollar also dropped. Travel could slow not only to Paris but other major cities, hurting airlines and other related businesses. A decline in tourism in Europe could weaken the euro.

“Considering how hard [Prime Minister Shinzo] Abe’s worked to try to get the economy up again, he still hasn’t been able to do it”, said Evan Lucas, market analyst at brokerage IG, referring to Mr. Abe’s efforts to boost the economy since he took office in 2012. Perhaps not quite. But it is hardening the tone of the migrant/refugee debate, and raising big questions over Europe’s homeland security policy and the West’s whole strategy, such as it is, for fighting Islamic State. French hotel group Accor was nearly 5% down.

ENERGY: USA crude added 28 cents to $41.02 a barrel. The price of Brent crude was up 1% to $44.92 a barrel.

In Asia, the other focus for markets will be Japan.

USA stocks opened lower. Europe is on high alert less than a year after the Charlie Hebdo massacre. “Here they were aiming at an entire population”, he added.

France has the largest number of tourists in the world and the sector accounts for nearly 7.5 per cent of GDP. The CAC40 French bourse was set to open 2% lower on Monday.

Analysts said the euro’s reaction was counter to the behaviour of investors in the summer months, when the single currency was showing apparent qualities of a safe-haven. “The United Kingdom, Spain and France itself has all seen its economies little damaged by terrorist atrocities in the past”.

“The latest attack may delay the European economic recovery”, said Peerapong Jirasevijinda, the chief investment officer at Bangkok-based BBL Asset Management, which oversees about $17 billion.

Traditional safety plays into assets such as U.S. Treasury bonds would also go against the prevailing market trend that’s in the process of discounting an interest rate rise from the Federal Reserve next month. With few expecting the fallout from the attack to be big enough to affect Fed decision making, any Monday move will likely be short lived.

Meanwhile, USA stock futures fell on Sunday, with the Dow futures down 150 points and the S&P futures declining 0.76 per cent in early Asian trading. The greenback should outperform against this backdrop, while the euro is likely to remain under a cloud. Overall market thinking post-Paris is that aside from the shock and horror of the shootings, similar events over the past 15 years have not tended to have any durable impact on economic confidence and activity.