Asain stocks were steady on the last trading day of the year. China’s Shanghai Composite index gained half a percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng surged 0.2 percent and Singapore’s Straits Times index added 0.1 percent. Japan’s NIKKEI-225 ended flat while South Korea’s KOSPI remained close due to a holiday.
European markets are on course for their worst year since 2018 as Russia’s war in Ukraine, high inflation and tightening monetary policy hammered risk assets around the world. Global index was heading for a 20 percent drop this year.
European shares were down in intra-day trade. Germany’s DAX declined 0.8 percent, France’s CAC fell 0.7 percent and London’s FTSE 100 was trading 0.4 percent down when reports last came in.