Markets steady despite talk of US stimulus cut

Global stocks drifted lower Thursday as another round of strong U.S. economic data reinforced expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will begin to reduce its monetary stimulus this month, AP reported. Expectations that the Fed will decide to begin "tapering" its $85 billion in monthly asset purchases at its Dec. 18 meeting ratcheted up after the U.S. government reported that the U.S. economy grew at an annualized rate of 3.6 percent in the third quarter, its fastest pace since the first quarter of 2012. The increase was up from the previous estimate of 2.8 percent and largely due to an inventory buildup despite softer consumption and investment measures. A 23,000 fall in weekly U.S. jobless claims to 298,000 also added to the evidence that the U.S. economy is growing strongly and that the stimulus will be reduced. Whether those expectations remain intact could hinge on Friday's official nonfarm payrolls report for November. Earlier this year, fears of the stimulus withdrawal had caused jitters in the markets as the monetary injection has helped to shore up stocks for several years. Recently, though, the reaction has been more muted amid the realization that it's predicated on an improving economic outlook. In Europe, markets traded on the back of U.S. developments, especially after the European Central Bank and the Bank of England kept their monetary policies unchanged as anticipated. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares closed down 0.2 percent at 6,498.33 while Germany's DAX fell 0.6 percent to 9,084.95. The CAC-40 in France ended 1.2 percent lower at 4,099.91. In the U.S., the Dow Jones industrial average was down 0.1 percent at 15,870 while the broader S&P 500 index fell 0.2 percent 1,790. The dollar faltered ahead of Friday's payrolls figures - the euro was up 0.6 percent at $1.3667 while the dollar fell 0.5 percent to 101.84 yen. Earlier in Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 dropped 1.5 percent to 15,177.49 and China's Shanghai Composite fell 0.2 percent to 2,247.06. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was down 0.1 percent at 23,712.57 and South Korea's Kospi eased 0.1 percent to 1,984.77.