* Asian stock markets: https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
By Hideyuki Sano
TOKYO, Sept 11 (Reuters) - Share markets struggled globally
on Friday in a shadow cast by overnight falls in U.S. big tech
shares, as well as doubts about the prospects for a U.S.
stimulus after the Senate rejected a Republican bill.
European stocks are expected to trade slightly lower, with
euro stoxx 50 futures STXEc1 down 0.1%.
In Asia, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares
outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS gained 0.2%, thanks to a rebound
in Hong Kong and Chinese shares, but it still hovered just above
a one-month trough touched earlier this week. Japan's Nikkei
.N225 rose 0.6%.
Dampening the mood, the U.S. Senate on Thursday killed a
Republican bill that would have provided around $300 billion in
new coronavirus aid, as Democrats seeking far more funding
prevented it from advancing. "The need for more fiscal support seems obvious, but the
chances of imminent support have diminished significantly,"
wrote Rodrigo Catril, senior FX strategist at National Australia
Bank in Sydney.
Data also showed the number of Americans filing new claims
for unemployment benefits remained high last week, and the total
number of people who are on unemployment benefits increased to
29.6 million. U.S. tech shares, unquestionable leaders of the world's
stock recovery since late March, failed to sustain a brief
rebound.
On Wall Street on Thursday, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 1.77%
while the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped 1.99%, both on course
for a second straight week of losses. .N
The NYSE Fang+ index of big 10 tech companies .NYFANG has
lost 5.4% so far this week -- its biggest weekly loss since the
market turmoil in March if sustained by the end of Friday.
Still, the index is more than double its March trough and
investors have gathered that their high valuations are
justifiable in light of near zero interest rates in much of the
developed world and massive liquidity the world's central banks
have created.
Many investors have said the selloff was a healthy
correction. "In light of digital transformations that are likely to
come, investors are hardly becoming pessimistic," said Tomo
Kinoshita, global market strategist at Invesco.
Yet, with the world's stocks still trading near the most
expensive levels relative to profit outlook since the 2000 tech
bubble, some analysts called for caution.
"Global shares had rallied on expectations of economic
recovery from lockdowns. But as the autumn begins (in the
northern hemisphere), people wonder if the coronavirus
infections could worsen," said Kozo Koide, chief economist at
Asset Management One.
"You never know if vaccine deployment is that easy nor if
banks need to aside more provisions for struggling firms in
hospitality sector. Considering all that, investors are likely
to question the current valuations can be justified," he said.
In the currency market, the British pound licked its wounds
near a 1 1/2-month low set on Thursday on fears that UK-EU trade
negotiations may fall apart.
The European Union told Britain it should urgently scrap a
plan to break their divorce treaty, but Prime Minister Boris
Johnson's government refused and pressed ahead with a draft law
that could sink four years of Brexit talks. The pound traded at $1.2826 GBP=D4 , having slipped to
$1.2773 overnight.
The euro changed hands at $1.1838 EUR= having briefly hit
a one-week high on Thursday after European Central Bank
President Christine Lagarde said that while the ECB is watching
the exchange rate, it is not a monetary policy tool.
Traders took her comments to mean the ECB was unlikely to
undertake measures to weaken the currency.
The yen was little moved at 106.18 per dollar JPY= .
Oil prices were under pressure from a surprise rise in U.S.
stockpiles and weak demand due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Brent crude LCOc was down 0.25% at $39.96 a barrel after
falling nearly 2% on Thursday. U.S. crude CLc1 was down 0.1%
at $37.25, having fallen 2% in the previous session.
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MSCI World index https://tmsnrt.rs/3iiR1qM
U.S. unemployment https://tmsnrt.rs/35rYTm6
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(Editing by Kim Coghill & Simon Cameron-Moore)