Sawt Falasteen - US stocks mostly fall as Tokyo hits 33-year high

Asian equities, however, enjoyed a much-needed bounce Tuesday, with Tokyo scoring a three-decade high after a rally on Wall Street on Monday.

But US stocks could not keep the momentum going, with sentiment dampened following a lackluster forecast by the World Bank, which projected global growth would slow to 2.4 percent in 2024 from the estimated 2.6 percent last year, due in part to weaker activity in the United States and China.

Meanwhile, US trade data from November showed drops in both imports and exports, a trend that "fits with a weakening global economic environment," said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare.

Eurozone stock markets slid as news of a shock contraction in German industrial output fanned fears over the health of Europe's top economy.

"Having ended 2023 very much on the up there appears to be little in the way of enthusiasm to drive markets higher in the short term, with trading activity subdued and a relatively negative bias so far year to date," said CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson.

Crude futures rebounded, one day after slumping following a sharp price cut by Saudi Aramco -- which fueled concerns that supply was outstripping demand.

Asian indices shot higher Tuesday, with Tokyo hitting its highest level since 1990 as traders pointed to the positive effects from Wall Street's recent surge.

"Buying dominated a wide range of stocks in Tokyo as a series of economic indicators, including the jobs report, raised expectations of a soft landing for the US economy and high-tech shares gained" in New York, Iwai Cosmo Securities said.

The outlook was given a partial boost by Monday's short-lived plunge in oil prices -- a key driver of inflation -- after Aramco announced a cut of $2 a barrel as it looks to regain lost market share.

Global equities have stumbled into the new year as a rally at the end of 2023 came to an end on worries that investors may have been too optimistic about expected Federal Reserve interest rate cuts.

Investors are now looking ahead to Thursday's key US inflation data.

- Key figures around 2130 GMT -

New York - Dow: DOWN 0.4 percent at 37,525.16 (close)

New York - S&P 500: DOWN 0.2 percent at 4,756.50 (close)

New York - Nasdaq: UP 0.1 percent at 14,856.71 (close)

London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.1 percent at 7,683.96 (close)

Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.2 percent at 16,688.36 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.3 percent at 7,426.62 (close)

EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.4 percent at 4,467.17 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.2 percent at 33,763.18 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.2 percent at 16,190.02 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.3 percent at 2,897.34 (close)

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0934 from $1.0950 on Monday

Dollar/yen: UP at 144.48 yen from 144.23 yen

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2710 from $1.2748

Euro/pound: UP at 86.00 pence from 85.89 pence

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 1.9 percent at $77.59 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: UP 2.1 percent at $72.24 per barrel

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D.Qudsi--SF-PST