China bucked a downbeat trend in Asia, while "Brexit" fears push bond yields lower throughout Europe
Asian markets ended mostly lower
ahead of the week's central bank meetings in the U.S. and Japan, and next week's "Brexit" referendum. A stronger yen weighed on Japanese exporters, including major automaker stocks, sinking the Nikkei 1% for the day. Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 0.6%, and South Korea's Kospi fell 0.4%.
China's Shanghai Composite bucked the downbeat global trend, closing 0.4% higher. Traders are awaiting a decision from Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI), due out after U.S. markets close, as to whether Chinese-listed stocks will be included in its Emerging Markets index.
Stocks in Europe are lower again today, as central bank uncertainty and
"Brexit" fears send risk-averse traders out of stocks and into safe-haven assets, including bonds. In fact, Germany's 10-year bund yield dropped into negative territory for the first time ever, and low bond yields across the eurozone are especially weighing on bank stocks. At last check, London's FTSE 100 is down 1.2%, France's CAC 40 has shed 1.6%, and the German DAX is 0.8% lower.
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