Oil Slides as China Stocks Swing While Dollar Holds Gains

Crude oil dropped toward a five-year low while China’s Shanghai Composite Index (SHCOMP) fluctuated after regulators urged caution following an 18 percent surge in two weeks. Emerging-market currencies were weaker against the dollar after a U.S. payrolls report beat all estimates. Oil in the U.S. and London was down at least 1 percent, with West Texas Intermediate crude headed for its lowest close since July 2009. The Shanghai Composite Index swung from a loss of 2 percent to a 0.2 percent gain by 10:56 a.m. in Tokyo, while the MSCI Asia Pacific Index swung between gains and losses. The greenback traded near a more-than seven-year high versus the yen and climbed against the currencies of New Zealand, Malaysia, Indonesia and South Korea. Investors must consider risks while putting money into stocks, China’s securities regulator warned yesterday after a buying spree fueled a 21 percent rally in the Shanghai Composite Index over the past month, the most among 93 global indexes tracked by Bloomberg. BP Plc will cut jobs and freeze certain projects amid oil’s slump into a bear market, the Sunday Times reported, citing an interview with Chiief Financial Officer Brian Gilvary. The 321,000 worker increase in U.S. nonfarm payrolls topped every economists’ projection. “After digesting the positive U.S. employment data and the weaker yen, the market could trade cautiously as it eyes the possibility of higher U.S. interest rates,” Shoji Hirakawa, chief equity strategist at Okasan Securities Co. in Tokyo, said by phone. “The consensus for U.S. rate hikes is currently mid-next year, but that could begin to be brought earlier.” Foreign-debt levels of companies in emerging markets from China to India and Brazil are underestimated, threatening financial stability, the Bank for International Settlements said. China is expected to post slower growth in trade for November today. By Emma O’Brien and Nick Gentle