Global markets were in the red, with Japan's Nikkei suffering a historic slump and New York falling sharply due to economic anxiety and the fallout from recent monetary policy changes.
After the sharp drop in Europe, all three major US indexes spent the day in the red, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average losing 2.6%, or more than 1,000 points, to end at 38,703.27.
The losses followed bearish days last Thursday and Friday, sparked by poor US employment data and a negative manufacturing survey that fueled recession fears.
Seizing the moment, some market watchers called on the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates - perhaps even at an emergency meeting - after the central bank kept rates unchanged last week, AFP reported.
But market watchers are also focusing on the fallout from Japan's decision to raise interest rates last week, which boosted the yen and sent Japan's Nikkei stock market down 12.4%.
Monday's decline in Tokyo's Nikkei was the worst since the 2011 Fukushima crisis. The index also suffered its biggest point loss in history, shedding 4,451.28 points.
Last week, the Bank of Japan raised interest rates for the second time in 17 years, with talk of another hike imminent, while the US Federal Reserve hinted at a rate cut as early as September.
"Investor sentiment eased as US employment data for July came in lower than expected, raising concerns that the US economy is slowing more than expected," IwaiCosmo Securities said. | BGNES
.jpeg)
