GLOBAL MARKETS-Global stocks fall to lowest in month on U.S. growth worries

By David Randall

NEW YORK, Oct 2 (Reuters) - World equity benchmarks hit

their lowest levels in a month Wednesday as signs of a slowdown

in U.S. economic growth and weak earnings in Europe fanned fears

that the U.S.-China trade war could push the global economy into

a recession.

A measure of U.S. manufacturing released Tuesday fell to its

lowest level in more than 10 years, removing one of few

remaining bright spots in the global economy and come just as

Europe is seen as close to falling into recession.

"The weakening conditions in Europe and the slowdown in

China, it's all adding up to the same thing essentially: worries

that the global economy is slowing and giving investors reason

to pause and take profits," said Robert Pavlik, chief investment

strategist manager at SlateStone Wealth LLC in New York.

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe .MIWD00000PUS shed

1.49%, following broad declines in Europe that pushed benchmark

indices to their lowest levels in a month. The FTSE 100 index

.FTSE slipped 2%, the largest drop across European regions.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell

436.86 points, or 1.64%, to 26,136.18, the S&P 500 .SPX lost

46.32 points, or 1.58%, to 2,893.93 and the Nasdaq Composite

.IXIC dropped 118.51 points, or 1.5%, to 7,790.18.

Selling was triggered after the Institute for Supply

Management's (ISM) index of factory activity, one of the most

closely watched data on U.S. manufacturing, dropped to the

lowest level since June 2009. Markets had been expecting the index to rise back above the

50.0 mark denoting growth.

"Historically, equity returns are worst when the ISM

manufacturing drops from levels below the 50 threshold," said

Patrik Lang, head of equity research at Julius Baer.

"Uncertainty around the U.S.-China trade war is obviously

the main reason for the weakness, with companies exposed to

global trade increasingly putting off investment decisions."

Concerns about the global economic outlook pushed investors

into the perceived safety of bonds. Benchmark 10-year notes

US10YT=RR last rose 12/32 in price to yield 1.6026%, from

1.644% late on Tuesday.

Euro zone bond yields inched up after another speech from

outgoing ECB chief Mario Draghi calling for fiscal stimulus to

boost the region's sluggish economy.

Gold rose to $1,486.46 per ounce XAU= from a two-month low

of $1,459.50 hit on Tuesday on the back of a robust U.S. dollar.

Weak economic data weighed on oil prices, though U.S. crude

was supported by industry data that showed an unexpected fall in

inventories in the United States. Brent crude LCOc1 futures were last down 1.9% at $57.79 a

barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1

fell 1.8% to $52.66 per barrel.

Global assets in 2019 http://tmsnrt.rs/2jvdmXl

Global currencies vs. dollar http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh

Emerging markets in 2019 http://tmsnrt.rs/2ihRugV

MSCI All Country Wolrd Index Market Cap http://tmsnrt.rs/2EmTD6j

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