ShutDown Update: Global stocks have slid just hours before the US government shutdown deadline expires at midnight. Market sentiment has weakened as US lawmakers have still not come to a consensus on their spending bill for the next fiscal year, which starts on Oct 1. The Dow Jones index fell 1.00 percent, S&P 500 futures lost 0.71 percent and the NASDAQ index retreated 1.01 percent by 10:00am EST. The S&P 500 index, which has gained nearly 20 percent so far this year, has dropped 1.10 percent over the shutdown scare. Concern over a US government shutdown spooked European and Asian floors. In morning trading, the EURO STOXX 50 and Germany’s DAX dropped 1.10 percent and France’s CAC Index fell 1.12 percent. Asian markets retreated on the fear the US wouldn’t resolve its budget debate before the deadline, and all indexes closed down. The Hong Kong Hang Seng was down 1.30 percent, Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed 2.06 percent lower. The market decline marks a major turnaround from last week’s robust growth, as investors were welcoming the news that the US chose to stick to their monthly $85 billion injection. The key stumbling block on the way to a new spending bill for the US is the debate over President Obama’s healthcare program dubbed Obamacare. Republicans have promised to keep fighting to slash funding, which is expected to cost $1.76 trillion between 2012 and 2021, instead of extending the debt-ceiling.
Posted on: Mon, 30 Sep 2013 18:30:34 +0000
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