Stock Markets in Asia Signal Lingering Unease: Live Updates

Markets in the Asia-Pacific region opened broadly lower on Monday, as investors remained nervous about global economic prospects despite stabilization efforts from governments around the world.

Stocks in Japan led the decline, falling more than 3 percent by midday, after the Japanese government unveiled measures on Saturday to support the world’s third-largest economy. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan pledged to use tax cuts, cash handouts, interest-free loans and other measures to spur growth in a country where the economy was already shrinking at the end of last year.

Other markets signaled continuing investor unease. Futures markets suggested Wall Street would open lower on Monday. Rising prices for U.S. government bonds and falling prices for oil also signaled remaining unease.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index was down 3.2 percent. The Kospi index in South Korea was down 1.5 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was down 1.4 percent. In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite index was down 1.6 percent.

Bucking the regional trend, stocks in Australia and New Zealand were higher.

Reporting was contributed by Alexandra Stevenson, Tiffany May, Edmund Lee, Marc Tracy, Daniel Victor and Carlos Tejada.

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