Business

Britain’s top share index dropped to a 16-week low on Tuesday as investors dumped risky assets due to rising geopolitical tensions after North Korea fired a missile over Japan. The blue chip FTSE 100 was down 1.3 percent at 7,307.52 points by 0936 GMT, in line with a broader slide among European shares. Financials were the biggest weight on the index, with the sector wiping more than 22 points off the index. Lenders HSBC, Lloyds and Barclays all fell between 0.4 to 2.6 percent. In the energy sector, heavyweights BP and Royal Dutch Shell were both down around 1.3 percent, while miners Rio Tinto and Glencore slid 1.4 percent. (Reuters)

Emerging equities retreated from last week’s three-year highs on Tuesday after a North Korean missile test sapped Asia’s big bourses, though dollar weakness capped the losses, with China’s yuan approaching a one-year high. After a sharp sell-off that took Seoul stocks down 1.6 percent and Hong Kong 0.4 percent lower, markets clawed back most of the losses, allowing the indexes to close just 0.2 percent and 0.14 percent down on the day. MSCI’s emerging equity index fell 0.5 percent, down more than 1 percent from last Friday’s highs. The Chinese yuan continued a recent run of gains, heading for its strongest month against the dollar since a July 2005 revaluation.  (Reuters)

Hong Kong stocks, along with those on major global markets, fell on Tuesday after North Korea fired a missile over Japan, escalating geo-political tensions. The benchmark Hang Seng index slid 0.4 percent, to 27,765.01, while the China Enterprises Index also lost 0.4 percent, to 11,296.08 points. Most Asian share markets dropped on Tuesday after the missile launch, though the Shanghai benchmark inched up. In Hong Kong, most sectors fell, with IT and financial shares leading the decline. (Reuters)

Sterling rose to two-week highs against the dollar on Tuesday after escalating tensions in the Korean peninsula added to the greenback’s woes. The pound has risen more than 1 percent against the dollar since Friday since Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen failed to offer any support to the dollar at a central bank conference last week. By 0745 GMT, sterling was 0.2 percent higher at $1.2951, after hitting $1.2963 earlier, its highest level since August 15. It hit fresh 10-month lows versus the single currency, falling 0.3 percent to 92.92 pence per euro. (Reuters)

The euro surged past a key level on Tuesday as investors grew bullish about its outlook after the head of the ECB refrained from talking about the single currency’s recent strength and in the backdrop of brewing US fiscal problems. The single currency was up 0.4 percent in early trades to $1.2029 against the dollar, up nearly 1.5 percent so far this month. It is the best performing currency in the G10 FX universe. Morgan Stanley strategists remains bullish about the single currency with little resistance seen before the $1.2280 levels as global reserve managers are still underweight. Against sterling, the euro skipped to its highest level since October 2016 at 92.83 pence. (Reuters)

China’s major shares indexes moved only marginally on Tuesday as investors paused for breath after a recent rally. Investors were little fazed by North Korea’s missile launch over Japan, which impacted indexes elsewhere in Asia. China’s share markets are largely driven by domestic factors. After two sessions of solid gains, there was some profit-taking on Chinese exchanges on Tuesday. The CSI300 index fell 0.2 percent to 3,834.54 points while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.1 percent to 3,365.23 points. (Reuters)