Markets mixed after Wall St losses as sterling bounces

Equities were mixed Monday following a selloff on Wall Street as last week’s rally ran out of steam on worries about rising interest rates and surging inflation, AFP reported.
The pound rose, however, after British Prime Minister Liz Truss on Friday replaced her finance minister and speculation swirled that she would row back on more of the debt-fuelled, tax-cutting budget that sent shivers through finance markets.
The healthy gains Asian markets enjoyed last week were tempered Monday as expectations about elevated prices and central bank moves to rein them in continued to fan recession fears.
The latest strong US inflation reading ramped up bets that the Federal Reserve will hike borrowing costs by 75 basis points twice more before the end of the year, stoking concerns the world’s top economy will flip into a recession.
All three main indexes on Wall Street finished sharply lower Friday, and Asia followed suit Monday morning before seeing a slight improvement as the day wore on.
Hong Kong dipped though Shanghai edged up with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the weekend reasserting his commitment to the zero-Covid strategy of lockdowns that has hammered the economy this year.
There were losses in Tokyo, Sydney, Singapore, Taipei, Jakarta and Wellington, though Seoul, Mumbai, Manila and Bangkok edged up.
London, Paris and Frankfurt all rose at the open.