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- England target repeat of Pakistan Test whitewash
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- Weary Sinner happy for day off after battling into Shanghai last 16
- Pakistan's Masood warns England still a force without Stokes
- Madrid's Carvajal to miss several months after serious knee injury
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- Sabalenka targets world number one and Wuhan hat-trick
- Tunisia votes with Saied set for re-election
- Bagnaia sets 'example' with Japan MotoGP win to cut gap on Martin
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- Ohtani magic powers Dodgers over Padres in MLB playoff thriller
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- Vietnam's young coffee entrepreneurs brew up a revolution
- Trump rallies at site of failed assassination: 'Never quit'
- Too hot by day, Dubai's floodlit beaches are packed at night
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- Lebanon state media says Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Miami on track for MLS record points after win in Toronto
- Monaco take top spot in Ligue 1 with win at Rennes
- Madrid beat Villarreal to level Liga leaders Barca
- Thuram treble fires Inter past Torino and up to second
- 'Fight': defiant Trump jets in to site of rally shooting
- Mexico City's new mayor sworn in with pledges on water, housing
- Israel on alert ahead of Hamas attack anniversary
- Guardians maul Tigers in MLB playoff series opener
- Macron criticises Israel on Gaza, Lebanon operations
- French rugby player whistled but 'serene' on return amid ongoing rape case
- Retegui hat-trick fires five-star Atalanta to hammering of Genoa
- Heavyweights Australia, England off to World Cup winning starts
- Visiting UN refugee agency chief decries 'terrible crisis' in Lebanon
- Spinners come to party as England defeat Bangladesh at T20 World Cup
- Search continues for missing in deadly Bosnia floods
- Man City sink Fulham to get title bid back on track
- France's Auradou whistled on Pau return in Perpignan loss amid ongoing rape case
- A 'forgotten' valley in storm-hit North Carolina, desperate for help
- Arsenal hit back in style after Southampton scare
- Hezbollah heir apparent Safieddine out of contact after strikes
- Liverpool stay top of Premier League as Arsenal, Man City win
- In dank Tour of Emilia, Pogacar shines in rainbow jersey
- DR Congo launches mpox vaccination drive, hoping to curb outbreak
- Trump returns to site of failed assassination
- Careless Leverkusen held to Bundesliga draw
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- Liverpool suffer Alisson injury blow
- Habosi helps Racing beat Vannes before Auradou's playing return
Asian markets fall on China growth concerns
Asian stocks retreated Tuesday on concerns over the impact of China's Covid restrictions on the world's second-largest economy as investment banks slashed their forecasts.
A strong rally on Wall Street, where the Dow closed 2.0 percent higher, did not carry over to Asia, and Beijing's announcement of a fresh raft of measures to stimulate the economy did little to calm nerves.
The package announced on Monday includes more than 140 billion yuan ($21 billion) in additional tax rebates, bringing the total amount of tax relief this year to 2.64 trillion yuan, Xinhua news agency reported following a meeting of the State Council chaired by Premier Li Keqiang.
China's economy has taken a hit from Beijing's zero-Covid approach to the pandemic, which has resulted in lengthy lockdowns of major cities and mass testing of millions of people.
Prolonged virus lockdowns have constricted supply chains, dampened demand and stalled manufacturing.
Investment banks UBS Group and JPMorgan Chase cut their China economic growth forecasts due to the impact of the coronavirus strategy.
UBS on Tuesday cut its 2022 GDP growth forecast to 3.0 percent from 4.2 percent while JPMorgan on Monday trimmed its forecast to 3.7 percent from 4.3 percent, Bloomberg News reported.
"The lingering restrictions and lack of clarity on an exit strategy from the current Covid policy will likely dampen corporate and consumer confidence and hinder the release of pent-up demand," UBS economists including Tao Wang wrote in a research note, according to Bloomberg.
China has targeted full-year growth of around 5.5 percent, but data published in April showed that first-quarter growth slowed to 4.8 percent after its economy lost steam in the latter half of last year.
Concerns over the economic fallout from China's dogged pursuit of a zero-Covid approach and its knock-on impact on supply chains and the wider global economy spooked investors, with Asian markets well into the red on Tuesday.
Tokyo was off 0.5 percent while Hong Kong was down 1.5 percent after the city's leader Carrie Lam said there would likely be no relaxation of quarantine travel restrictions for the remainder of her term, which ends on June 30.
Shanghai and Seoul were both down 0.8 percent, while Taiwan, Bangkok, Sydney and Manila also retreated. Singapore was one of the few markets to post gains.
Later in the week, investors will be eyeing the minutes from the latest Federal Reserve rate-setting meeting for clues about further rate hikes aimed at reining in inflation. A raft of economic figures will also provide insights into the state of the US economy.
"If inflation remains sticky and the Fed needs to be more aggressive, assets are not cheap enough yet -– in that world, more recession risk will need to be priced through lower earnings," said Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management.
"However, if inflation does cool down, there are many compelling opportunities, significantly if 'storm clouds' over the economy dissolve."
Oil was lower, with both contracts down 0.4 percent.
"Energy traders see choppy waters ahead for oil prices as uncertainty persists with the global economic outlook and over the EU's progress with a ban on Russian oil," said Edward Moya of OANDA
- Key figures at around 0330 GMT -
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.5 percent at 26,863.33 (break)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.5 percent at 20,172.28
Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 1.1 percent at 3,112.37
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 127.73 yen from 127.90 yen at 2030 GMT Monday
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0670 from $1.0692
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2564 from $1.2587
Euro/pound: UP at 84.93 pence from 84.92 pence
Brent North Sea crude: DOWN 0.4 percent at $112.94 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.4 at $109.81 per barrel
New York - Dow: UP 2.0 percent at 31,880.24 (close)
London - FTSE 100: UP 1.7 percent at 7,513.44 (close)
P.Cavaco--PC