- Italy targets climate activists in 'anti-Gandhi' demo clampdown
- US trade chief defends tariff hikes when paired with investment
- EU court blocks French ban on vegetable 'steak' labelling
- Meta AI turns pictures into videos with sound
- US dockworkers return to ports after three-day strike
- DR Congo to begin mpox vaccination campaign Saturday in east
- Meta must limit data use for targeted ads: EU court
- Oil extends gains, jobs report lifts Wall Street
- US hiring soars past expectations in sign of resilient market
- As EU targets Chinese cars, European rivals sputter
- Top EU court finds against FIFA in key transfer market ruling
- Oil extends gains, Hong Kong stocks resume rally
- 'A man provides': Ukrainian miners send families away as Russia advances
- EU states greenlight extra tariffs on EVs from China
- Hong Kong stocks resume rally, oil dips after Middle East-fuelled surge
- Crude stable after Israel-Iran surge, Hong Kong stocks resume gains
- Hera spacecraft to probe asteroid deflected by defence test
- US dockworkers to head back to work after tentative deal
- After Helene's destruction, North Carolina starts to rebuild
- Dockers end three-day strike at Montreal port
- What next for OpenAI after $157 billion bonanza?
- Israel-Hamas war causes 86-percent dive in Gaza GDP: IMF
- Milan's Morata moves house after Inter-fan town mayor 'violates' privacy
- 'Devastating' storm hits Augusta National but Masters will go on
- Relief in Brazil, Asia over delay to EU deforestation rules
- Oil prices jump, stocks fall on Middle East tensions
- Biden says 'discussing' possible Israeli strikes on Iran oil facilities
- Oil prices rise, stocks fall on Middle East tensions
- Oil rallies, stocks mostly retreat on Middle East tensions
- Phasing out teen smoking could save 1.2 mn lives: study
- 'Welcome relief': Asia producers hail EU deforestation law delay
- Japan PM slated to announce plans for 'happiness index'
- Turkish inflation falls less than expected in September at 49.4%
- Easing inflation lifts profit at UK supermarket Tesco
- Skiing calls on UN climate science to combat melting future
- China wine industry looks to breed climate resilience
- Tokyo rallies on weak yen, Hong Kong drops after surge
- Dutch airline KLM unveils 'firm' cost-cutting measures
- Carpe diem: the Costa Rican women turning fish into fashion
- Senegal looks to aquaculture as fish stocks dwindle
- Will AI one day win a Nobel Prize?
- Climate change, economics muddy West's drive to curb Chinese EVs
- Argentina's Milei vetoes university budget after huge protests
- TotalEnergies plans to grow oil and gas production until 2030
- 2024 Nobels offer glimmer of hope as global crises mount
- Tokyo rallies on weak yen, Hong Kong reverses after surge
- Tunisia readies for vote as incumbent Saied eyes victory
- High childcare costs in US weigh on women's employment
- US voters seek help with crushing childcare costs
- Taiwan shuts down for second day as Typhoon Krathon to land
Asian markets mostly rise as bargain-buying offsets fears over outlook
Asian investors squeezed out gains Tuesday as they tried to recover from the previous day's losses, but they remain gripped by fears over Europe's worsening energy crisis, China's economic slowdown and central bank efforts to contain surging inflation.
The dollar lost some momentum, with the euro supported ahead of an expected European Central Bank interest rate hike and sterling lifted by reports that new UK Prime Minister Liz Truss will unveil plans to cut energy bills.
Russia's decision not to resume gas supplies to Europe -- in retaliation for sanctions over Ukraine -- sent shock waves through trading floors Monday as it ramped up expectations of a painful recession in major economies.
"This shouldn't have been a surprise to most people, given that it was widely expected that Putin would play this card at some point," said CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson.
"Now that he has, Russia doesn't really have anywhere else to go, and while natural gas prices did shoot higher, they closed well off the highs of the day."
With Wall Street closed for a holiday, Asia had few new catalysts to drive buying.
Markets fluctuated between gains and losses in the morning but managed to clamber up as the day progressed.
Shanghai enjoyed a healthy bounce after China unveiled fresh economy-boosting measures.
But analysts warned that while a stimulus was welcomed as growth dwindles, traders were only looking for signs of an easing in the country's zero-Covid strategy, which has left millions in lockdown and threatens economic activity.
Hong Kong, Singapore, Seoul, Taipei, Manila, Mumbai, Bangkok and Jakarta all rose, while Tokyo was marginally up.
Sydney, however, dipped after the Reserve Bank of Australia lifted interest rates to a near eight-year high and warned of more pain ahead. Wellington also slipped.
London, Paris and Frankfurt eked out gains at the open.
- Global recession risk -
"A lot of clients are asking, have we seen the bottom yet and are we going into a global recession?" Grace Tam, of BNP Paribas Wealth Management Hong Kong, told Bloomberg Television.
"We do think the risk of a global recession, especially next year, is actually quite high" and that the energy crisis "is not fully priced" into markets, she said.
The next key event for investors is the ECB rate decision Thursday, with some observers tipping a 75 basis point hike to bring down record-high inflation.
That is followed later in the month by the Federal Reserve's meeting, where policymakers will debate a similar move, which would be the third rise in a row.
However, while central banks are lifting borrowing costs to fight surging prices, they have little power over the cost of oil, a key driver of the rises.
And on Monday, OPEC and other major producers announced a surprise cut in output, sending both main contracts rising. The move came after the crude market fell in recent months on demand fears caused by a possible recession.
"In absolute terms, the 100,000 barrels a day supply cut doesn't matter that much to global supply balances," said Noah Barrett of Janus Henderson Investors.
"However, in terms of signalling, the move is important as it indicates that OPEC+ is watching demand very closely and is trying to manage supply to keep a floor on oil prices."
Several countries including the United States had earlier called for a rise in production, which was followed by a small lift of 100,000 barrels.
"The modest increase we got a month ago is now gone, so OPEC+ is clearly sending a message that they are not bowing to external demands," said Barrett.
"We should expect continued volatility in oil prices, with global demand indicators driving price movements."
Brent and WTI were both down from Monday's levels.
- Key figures at around 0720 GMT -
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: FLAT at 27,626.51 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.1 percent at 19,240.39
Shanghai - Composite: UP 1.4 percent at 3,243.45 (close)
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 7,293.46
Euro/dollar: UP at $0.9957 from $0.9921 on Monday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.1575 from $1.1507
Dollar/yen: UP at 141.15 yen from 140.53 yen
Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.00 pence from 86.22 pence
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.6 percent at $88.92 per barrel
Brent North Sea crude: DOWN 0.5 percent at $95.31 per barrel
New York - Dow: Closed for public holiday
A.Agostinelli--CPN