• The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 218.55 points, or 0.9 percent, to 24,189.45, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 14.68 points, or 0.55 percent, to 2,642.19 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped 25.28 points, or 0.36 percent, to 7,069.03.
Wall Street stocks fell on Wednesday as possible U.S. military action against Syria stoked investor concerns about geopolitical risk to the American economy and minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee sparked worries about a more hawkish view on interest-rate increases.
• European shares fell on Wednesday in a broad-based pullback as rising tensions over Syria added to market worries, although solid results from Tesco and strength among telecoms stocks were a bright spot.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index ended the session down 0.6 percent. This follows gains on Tuesday when the mood was buoyed by a speech from Chinese President Xi Jinping which soothed worries over a possible trade war with the United States.
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• Asian stocks were mixed in early Thursday trade as investor confidence seen earlier in the week appeared to fade overnight amid geopolitical tensions.
• The Nikkei 225 eased 0.36 percent in early trade. The broader Topix was lower by the same degree as its mining subindex gained 1.46 percent while automakers slid. Oil-related stocks were moderately higher.
• Down Under, the S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.27 percent as gains in the materials and energy subindexes were offset by the financials sector slipping 0.42 percent.
• Over in South Korea, the Kospi bucked the broader trend to edge higher by 0.22 percent. Shippers gained in the morning while steelmakers slightly eased.
Reference: Reuters, CNBC
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