TOKYO : Asian stocks lost ground on Monday, retreating from over three-week highs as worries about a global economic downturn sapped investors' risk appetite.
At the same time, the dollar built on its recovery from a 2 1/2-week low against major peers, supported by demand for the U.S. currency as a safe haven. U.S. S&P 500 emini futures slipped 0.09 per cent, pointing to an extension of the benchmark's 0.93 per cent slump on Friday, when a survey showed business activity contracting for the first time in nearly two years amid persistently heated inflation and rapidly rising interest rates.Nasdaq futures eased 0.04 per cent, after a 1.77 per cent tumble for the tech-heavy stock index, as the bottom dropped out from under Snap Inc after the Snapchat owner posted its weakest-ever sales growth.
The dollar index - which measures the safe-haven currency against six major peers - edged 0.1 per cent higher to 106.81, climbing further from a 2 1/2-week low of 106.10 reached Friday.The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield was little changed at 2.79 per cent after sliding from as high as 3.083 per cent over the previous two sessions.