In Asian Equity Markets stocks fell and the dollar stood by a two-decade high on the euro on Wednesday as investors’ fears deepened that the continent is leading the world into recession, while oil and European equity futures attempted to steady after a slide. MSCI’s index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan fell 0.6 percent. Japan’s Nikkei fell 0.88 percent, on course for its first loss of the week. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was down 0.42 percent while Chinese blue chips fell 0.7 percent, dragged by worries about new COVID-19 cases in Shanghai risking fresh restrictions.

In Currency Markets the dollar stood tall on Wednesday, holding at a 20-year peak against the euro and multi-month highs against other major peers as higher gas prices and political uncertainty renewed recession fears and sent investors scrambling to the safe-haven currency. The euro was at $1.0262, only a fraction above its overnight low of $1.0236, its weakest since late 2002. Sterling was also trading down slightly at $1.1965 just off its 18-month intraday low hit overnight, and the Aussie dollar was under pressure at $0.6816.

In US Equity Markets the S&P 500 ended slightly higher on Tuesday as investors kept their focus on the growth trajectory of the U.S. economy, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq closed higher while the Dow fell. The Dow fell 0.42 percent, to 30,967.82, the S&P 500 gained 0.16 percent, to 3,831.39 and the Nasdaq Composite added 1.75 percent, to 11,322.24. Eight of the 11 major S&P sectors ended down, with communication services leading the gainers and energy notching the largest percentage decline, marking five-month lows as recession fears darkened the outlook for oil demand.

In Commodities Markets oil lost about 9 percent on Tuesday in the biggest daily decline since March on growing fears of a global recession and lockdowns in China that could slash demand. Global benchmark Brent crude settled at $102.77 a barrel, losing 9.5 percent. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude ended 8.2 percent lower at $99.50 a barrel. Spot gold was trading at $1,765.22 per ounce, having earlier declined as much as 2.6 percent. Spot silver fell 4.1 percent to $19.14 per ounce and platinum declined 2.4 percent to $864.23. Palladium, however, gained 0.6 percent to $1,934.43.

In European Equity Markets stocks slid 2.1 percent on Tuesday as rising energy prices stoked inflation worries, sending the euro sinking on recession concerns, while German utility Uniper extended its tumble amid worries about its bailout. The continent-wide STOXX 600 index marked its worst session in over two weeks. Europe’s utilities index lost 2 percent, while Germany’s DAX lost almost 3 percent. Uniper shares lost 9.5 percent as Germany prepared for the possibility of taking a stake in the country’s largest buyer of Russian gas.

In Bond Markets benchmark U.S. Treasury yields tumbled to one-month lows on Tuesday and a key part of the yield curve inverted for the first time in three weeks as economic worries dented risk appetite and increased demand for safe-haven U.S. debt. Benchmark 10-year yields fell as low as 2.780 percent, the lowest since May 27. They have fallen from 3.498 percent on June 14, the highest since April 2011. Two-year Treasury yields were at 2.816 percent, after hitting 2.729 percent on Friday, the lowest since June 7.