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BANGKOK (AP) — Shares have fallen in Asia after China reported that its economy grew at a 4.9% annual pace in July-September, down from 6.3% in the previous quarter.
U.S. futures also fell, while oil prices jumped $2.
China's National Bureau of Statistics said the world's second-largest economy slowed in the summer as global demand for exports faltered and the ailing property sector sank deeper into crisis.
The Chinese government has acted to help the economy with various policies, raising spending on building ports and other infrastructure, cutting interest rates and easing curbs on home-buying. But economists say wider reforms are needed to address longer-term problems, such as a fast-aging population and falling productivity, that are hindering growth.
The weak global demand and the property industry remain the biggest shadows overhanging the economy in the near term, economists said.
“The wider data on the property sector remained weak, although green shoots are appearing,” Capital Economics said in a report. “New housing starts continued to drop and are now at their lowest levels since 2005,” it said.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 0.1% to 17,755.25 and the Shanghai Composite index dropped 0.6% to 3,064.76.
The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo also was down 0.1% at 32,003.18. South Korea's Kospi added less than 0.1%, to 2,461.78 and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was up less than 3 points, at 7,060.50.
Bangkok's SET rose 0.5% and India's Sensex was down less than 0.1%.
On Tuesday, the S&P 500 edged down less than 1 point to 4,373.20. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added less than 0.1%, to 33,997.65, and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.3%, to 13,533.75.
A report on Tuesday showed shoppers spent more at U.S. retailers last month than economists expected. But a too-hot economy could also give inflation more fuel and push the Fed to keep interest rates high to suffocate it. Such a move would hurt prices for stocks and other investments.
Treasury yields in the bond market rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed to 4.83% from 4.69% late Monday.
A sharp jump since the summer in the 10-year yield has weighed on the stock market, as traders increasingly accept the Fed’s forecasts that it will likely keep rates high for a long time. The central bank has already pulled its main interest rate to the highest level since 2001 and is debating whether to increase it one more time.
Nvidia and other chipmakers were under extra pressure after the U.S. government broadened restrictions to stop China from acquiring advanced computer chips and the equipment to manufacture them. Nvidia fell 4.7%.