World stock markets were mostly lower Tuesday as Ukraine tensions continued to bubble and jitters about China's economy resurfaced, AP reported. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was down 1.6 percent at 22,671.26 as a drop in China's money supply unnerved investors ahead of first quarter economic growth figures due Wednesday. China's Shanghai Composite Index shed 1.4 percent to 2,101.60. China's leaders are targeting growth of 7.5 percent this year for the world's second-biggest economy. But exports and imports have been weak in the first quarter, suggesting the economy is slowing and raising the risk of job's losses. China's growth of 7.7 percent last year tied 2012 for the slowest since 1999. In early European trading, France's CAC 40 was down 0.3 percent at 4,371.80 and Germany's DAX fell 0.7 percent to 9,275.32. Britain's FTSE 100 shed 0.2 percent to 6,568.48. Futures augured a down session on Wall Street. Dow Jones and S&P 500 futures were both down 0.1 percent. Global stock markets suffered last week over concerns that technology stocks are overvalued and nervousness about the crisis in the Ukraine. In Asia, South Korea's Kospi fell 0.2 percent to 1,992.27 while Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 0.6 percent to close at 13,996.81. The dollar holding close to 102 yen levels also helped underpin Tokyo share prices. A weak yen is a plus for many Japanese companies because they rely on exports. Stock markets in Southeast Asia were mostly higher and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.6 percent to 5,388.20. The dollar was trading at 101.88 yen, inching up from 101.83 late Monday. The euro fell to $1.3799 from $1.3823. Benchmark U.S. crude for May delivery was down 90 cents at $103.15 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 31 cents Monday to settle at $104.05.
