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China stock wobbles leave global markets fumbling

Wellington - European stocks swung between gains and losses after Chinese shares wobbled in their last day of trading this week. Oil declined, the dollar strengthened and US equity-index futures rose.

Equities in Shanghai pared most of a 4.7% drop before holidays to mark the end of World War II. While Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures rose after the gauge tumbled 3% on Tuesday, shares in Europe were little changed.

READ: China stocks decline before World War II holidays

Stocks fell worldwide over the previous two days on concern a slowdown in China will curb global growth. Australia’s economy expanded at half the pace forecast by analysts, a report showed on Wednesday after data a day earlier pointed to weakness in Europe and the slowest factory expansion in the US in two years.

Jobs reports from the world’s largest economy this week may shed light on the timing of the first Federal Reserve rate increase since 2016.

“China is still making people panic,” said Teis Knuthsen, chief investment officer at Saxo Bank A/S’s private-banking unit in Hellerup, Denmark. “But many companies are starting to look very cheap now and the market will eventually find a support level, especially if the Fed doesn’t raise rates this month.”

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index slipped less than 0.1% at 13:03 after climbing as much as 0.8%. West Texas Intermediate crude slid 2.2%. S&P 500 futures advanced 0.5% and the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index gained 0.3%.

Stocks

A gauge tracking volatility across asset classes approached its highest level since 2012 on Tuesday and futures on the Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index indicate price swings in the S&P 500 are here to stay.

More than $5trn was erased from the value of global equities last month as China devalued the yuan and reports signaled growth in the world’s second-biggest economy was slowing.

The rout sent valuations for shares in the MSCI All- Country World Index to as low as 14 times estimated 12-month earnings, the least since October. (For more news on stocks, see TOP STK.)

“You have worries about the global growth outlook, led by Chinese concerns, at a time when the Fed is thinking about raising interest rates,” said Shane Oliver, a global strategist at AMP Capital Investors Ltd. in Sydney, which oversees about $114bn. “That’s leaving investors very twitchy.”

Emerging markets

While the Shanghai Composite Index climbed back from its intraday low on speculation state funds intervened to stabilized the market, it failed to rebound and ended the day 0.2% lower. A gauge of Chinese shares in Hong Kong dropped 1.6%.

The MSCI Emerging Markets Index slid 0.7%, dropping for a third day, as Malaysia’s index fell 1.2% and benchmark gauges in Saudi Arabia and Dubai lost at least 2%.

Malaysia’s ringgit and South Korea’s won declined at least 0.8% as a gauge of 20 developing-nation currencies fell for a second day, losing 0.3%. (For more news on emerging markets, see TOP EM.)

WTI slipped to $44.42 a barrel, after falling 7.7% on Tuesday. Energy analysts are predicting a 900 000-barrel jump in US supplies in a report due Wednesday. Brent in London retreated 1.7% to $48.73.

Currencies

The dollar strengthened for the first time in three days against the euro, adding 0.5% to $1.1262. It rallied 0.6% to ¥120.05. Australia’s dollar slipped 0.2% to 70.04 US cents and touched 69.82c, the weakest level since April 2009, after the gross domestic product data.

Germany’s government bonds rose a day before a European Central Bank decision on monetary policy. The 10-year bund yield declined two basis points to 0.77%. Treasury 10-year note yields were little changed at 2.15%.

Corporate-debt sales picked up after a seasonal slowdown in August. Toyota Motor Credit Corp., Bank of Nova Scotia and Erste Group Bank AG were among companies marketing euro-denominated bonds, according to people familiar with the sales, who asked not to be identified as they aren’t authorized to to speak publicly.

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