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| A TV screen shows the Asian stocks index at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in Hong Kong, June 20, 2013. |
Asian and European stock markets plunged Thursday, hours after U.S.
Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke said the central bank may ease back
on its efforts to the stimulate the country's economy, the world's
largest.
Key Asian exchanges ended down by about 2 percent or more, with markets in Paris, Frankfurt and London all falling by more than 2 percent in afternoon trading. Key U.S. exchanges, which fell more than 1 percent Wednesday after Bernanke outlined the central bank's plans, dropped another 1 percent as trading opened in New York on Thursday.
Financial analysts had criticized the U.S. central bank in recent weeks for what they said was a muddled message on whether it planned to cut back on its $85 billion in monthly purchases of securities to keep long-term interest rates at record lows in an attempt to boost the American economy. The economic stimulus has helped push U.S. markets to record highs, but with the uncertainty, stocks lately have been gyrating between sharp gains and losses.
Now, Bernanke says that with the U.S. economy showing signs of improving, the Fed is likely to trim its asset purchases later in the year and end them in 2014, assuming the American economy does not falter in the meantime.
But even with the clarity on the U.S. central bank's intentions, investors moved quickly to sell stocks, on the prospect of a tighter U.S. monetary policy.
Bernanke said, however, the central bank would leave its key lending rate, already near zero, unchanged at least until the country's jobless rate falls about another percentage point from its current 7.6 percent level.
Key Asian exchanges ended down by about 2 percent or more, with markets in Paris, Frankfurt and London all falling by more than 2 percent in afternoon trading. Key U.S. exchanges, which fell more than 1 percent Wednesday after Bernanke outlined the central bank's plans, dropped another 1 percent as trading opened in New York on Thursday.
Financial analysts had criticized the U.S. central bank in recent weeks for what they said was a muddled message on whether it planned to cut back on its $85 billion in monthly purchases of securities to keep long-term interest rates at record lows in an attempt to boost the American economy. The economic stimulus has helped push U.S. markets to record highs, but with the uncertainty, stocks lately have been gyrating between sharp gains and losses.
Now, Bernanke says that with the U.S. economy showing signs of improving, the Fed is likely to trim its asset purchases later in the year and end them in 2014, assuming the American economy does not falter in the meantime.
But even with the clarity on the U.S. central bank's intentions, investors moved quickly to sell stocks, on the prospect of a tighter U.S. monetary policy.
Bernanke said, however, the central bank would leave its key lending rate, already near zero, unchanged at least until the country's jobless rate falls about another percentage point from its current 7.6 percent level.
Sumber :
http://www.voanews.com/content/asian-european-markets-plunge/1685727.html
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