- Pakistan 'vigilantes' behind rise in online blasphemy cases
- Nearly 90, but opera legend Kabaivanska is still calling tune
- Smith experiment as Test opener over, Green out of India series
- With inflation down, ECB eyes faster tempo of rate cuts
- Is life possible on a Jupiter moon? NASA goes to investigate
- Dodgers crush Mets 9-0 in MLB playoff series opener
- South Korea military says 'fully ready' as drone tensions soar
- Cummins back, Marsh and Head out of Pakistan ODI series
- Shanghai stocks swing after stimulus briefing as most of Asia rises
- New Zealand's Latham promises 'no fear' as he takes charge for India Tests
- Kyrgios vows to 'shut up' doubters with December comeback
- Public hearings start into death of Brit by Russian nerve agent
- Ex-Stasi officer faces verdict over 1974 Berlin border killing
- Role of government, poverty research tipped for economics Nobel
- 'Stolen satire' feeds US election misinformation
- Rookie McCarty captures first PGA Tour title in Black Desert Championship
- Australia all-rounder Green ruled out of India Test series
- Seeing double in Nigeria's 'twins capital of the world'
- UK FM to attend EU foreign affairs talks for first time in 2 years
- Carter, Billups among 13 new Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
- Ravens rip Commanders as Lions lose NFL sacks leader in win
- Hezbollah drone strike kills four, wounds dozens at Israeli base
- China says launches military drills around Taiwan
- Stewart leads Liberty past Lynx to level WNBA Finals
- England return to winning ways in Nations League, Austria thrash Norway
- UN chief says attacks on UNIFIL 'may constitute a war crime'
- Ravens outlast Commanders while Bucs batter Saints in NFL
- Dozens hurt in Israel as Hezbollah claims drone strike
- England deserve 'world class' coach: Carsley
- Burkina Faso win to become first qualifiers for 2025 AFCON
- AC Milan's Pulisic among five out for USA match in Mexico
- France's Amandine Henry retires from international football
- Centre-left set to win pro-Ukraine Lithuania's vote
- India's World Cup hopes in Pakistan hands after Australia defeat
- Zelensky says NKorea sending troops to Russian army
- England beat Finland to get back on track
- King and Lewis propel West Indies to T20 triumph over Sri Lanka
- Pre-Halloween 'Terrifier' lands atop North America box office
- 'I still plan to compete and play next season,' says Djokovic
- Harris, Trump seek advantage in knife-edge election battle
- Chepngetich shatters women's marathon world record in Chicago
- Kamindu and Asalanka power Sri Lanka to 179 against West Indies
- Chepngetich shatters women's marathon world record as Korir wins in Chicago
- Spain send injured Yamal home 'to prioritise player's health'
- In milestone, SpaceX 'catches' megarocket booster after test flight
- Iraq walks fine line with pro-Iran factions to avoid war
- Race four abandoned after New Zealand breeze into 3-0 lead in America's Cup
- West Indies win toss, put Sri Lanka in to bat in first T20
- Sudan rescuers say air strike killed 23 in Khartoum market
- Netanyahu tells UN to move Lebanon peacekeepers out of 'harm's way'
Stocks mostly fall as recession fears linger
Stock markets mostly fell on Tuesday as investors fret over the possibility that the US Federal Reserve will move aggressively to combat inflation.
Panic has swept through trading floors since data on Friday showed US consumer prices rising at their fastest pace in decades on surging energy and food costs caused by the Ukraine war and supply chain snarls.
Investors are now bracing for the Fed's interest rate decision on Wednesday as it struggles to walk a fine line between reining in inflation and trying to keep the economy on track.
"While there is no doubt that inflation is a considerable challenge for the US at this point, slamming on the brakes too hard risks pushing the economy off its track," said Tai Hui, chief market strategist for Asia at JP Morgan Asset Management.
The inflation reading has raised expectations that the US central bank could raise rates by a hefty 75 basis points, higher than its previous 50-point hike.
"The mood has turned very negative since the latter half of last week," said Craig Erlam, analyst at online trading platform OANDA.
"Now all the talk is about if we're heading for a recession and how bad it will be," Erlam said.
Those recession fears sent Wall Street plunging on Monday, with the broad-based S&P 500 stocks index sinking into a bear market after dropping more than 20 percent from its recent peak.
After opening higher on Tuesday, US indices diverged near midday, with the S&P 500 flat while the Dow fell and the tech-heavy Nasdaq rose.
"An anaemic and now rapidly disappearing bounce in US markets shows us that investors are very cautious about going bargain-hunting ahead of tomorrow's momentous Fed decision," said Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading platform IG.
"Not just 75bps but even 100bps are being viewed as a possibility on Wednesday evening, as the committee looks to try and steal a march on inflation," he said.
London, Paris, Frankfurt and most Asian equities closed in the red.
Oil prices, which have fuelled the global inflation surge, rose more than 1.5 percent, with Brent North Sea Crude, the international benchmark, above $124 per barrel.
Cryptocurrencies have mirrored the falls in the stock markets, with bitcoin tumbling to an 18-month low under $23,000 this week.
Digital currency exchange Coinbase said Tuesday it will lay off 18 percent of staff, citing tight economic conditions and an overly rapid expansion.
- Key figures at around 1545 GMT -
New York - Dow: DOWN 0.4 percent at 30,410.87 points
London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.3 percent at 7,187.46
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.9 percent at 13,304.39
Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 1.2 percent at 5,949.84
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 1.1 percent at 3,405.06
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.3 percent at 26,629.86 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: FLAT at 21,067.99 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 1.0 percent at 3,288.91 (close)
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0414 from $1.0412 late Monday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2004 from $1.2136
Euro/pound: UP at 86.77 pence from 85.76 pence
Dollar/yen: UP at 134.88 yen from 134.42 yen
Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.7 percent at $124.34 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.5 percent at $122.77 per barrel
burs-lth/pvh
J.Williams--AMWN