by Associated Press Asia stocks rise, Europe drifts as initial Greek nerves ease by YURI KAGEYAMA, Associated Press - 27 January 2015 04:11-05:00 TOKYO (AP) — European stocks drifted lower and Asian markets were mostly higher Tuesday as investors calmed from initial jitters over Greece's election result. KEEPING SCORE: France's CAC 40 slipped 0.4 percent to 4,656.71 and Germany's DAX was off 0.4 percent at 10,759.14. Britain's FTSE 100 was barely changed at 6,848.56. U.S. shares were set to move lower. Dow futures fell 0.3 percent to 17,566 and S&P 500 futures dropped 0.3 percent to 2,048. GREECE FACTOR: Markets are still weighing the implications of Sunday's election victory by Greece's Syriza party, which has vowed to end painful austerity policies that are a condition of the country's EU-IMF-ECB bailout. But concerns of a disastrous confrontation in which, say, Greece might stop repaying its loans or the eurozone stop funding Athens, eased after both sides said they were open to negotiation. ANALYST TAKE: "The biggest surprise in global markets at the moment is perhaps the lack of panic around the results from the Greek elections," IG strategist Stan Shamu in a market commentary. "Focus has also been on extreme weather conditions in the northeast part of the US, some big earnings this week and the Federal Reserve meeting." ASIA'S DAY: Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average jumped 1.7 percent to 17,768.30 and South Korea's Kospi added 0.9 percent to 1,952.40. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.8 percent to 5,547.20. Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 0.4 percent to 24,807.28. Southeast Asian markets were mostly higher. ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude was down 23 cents to $44.92 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 44 cents to close at $45.15 on Monday. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils, fell 16 cents to $48.00. Oil has plunged since June, when it traded above $100, on high supplies and weak growth in demand. CURRENCIES: The euro rose to $1.1281 from $1.1246 the previous day after trading at its lowest since 2003. The dollar was slightly lower at 118.15 yen from 118.27 yen, but that marked a rebound from earlier sessions. ___ Follow Yuri Kageyama: https://twitter.com/yurikageyama News Topics: Business, General news, Stock prices, Currency markets, Japanese yen, Stock indices and averages, Stock markets, Leading economic indicators, Economy, Financial markets, Euro People, Places and Companies: Japan, Greece, East Asia, Europe, Asia, Western Europe Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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