Asian shares slip as growth fears persist

(NEW YORK) — Stocks fell for a second day on Wall Street on concern that a proposed bank bailout for the Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus could cause the euro crisis to flare up again. The Dow Jones industrial average was down 39 points, or 0.3 percent, to 14,472 as of 11 a.m. EDT. The Dow fell as much as 110 points in the early going, before recouping some of its loss. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell eight points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,552. The Nasdaq composite dropped 17 points, or 0.5 percent, to 3,232.

(NEW YORK) — Stocks fell for a second day on Wall Street on concern that a proposed bank bailout for the Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus could cause the euro crisis to flare up again. The Dow Jones industrial average was down 39 points, or 0.3 percent, to 14,472 as of 11 a.m. EDT. The Dow fell as much as 110 points in the early going, before recouping some of its loss. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell eight points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,552. The Nasdaq composite dropped 17 points, or 0.5 percent, to 3,232.

By Russ Koesterich: In recent weeks, governments across the world have stepped up efforts to address the European debt crisis.

European officials will move to prevent Spain from triggering a new round of convulsions as policy makers begin preparing for a summit next week aimed at easing the region’s three-year-old debt crisis

U.S. stock futures are mixed after European leaders said they made progress on resolving the region's debt problems at a weekend summit but delayed offering any details.

MOSCOW — G20 officials struggled to find a common form of words on currency manipulation ahead of a summit on Friday at which divisions within the group over growth versus austerity looked set to flare back into life. The head of the European Central Bank criticised wrangling over currencies ahead of the meeting of Group of 20 financial leaders where Japan is expected to escape any censure for its expansionary policies.

Since the beginning of the European debt crisis, most economists have focused on the potential consequences of a breakup of the euro zone. It’s easy to understand why. Although unlikely, a euro-zone breakup would be a potentially cataclysmic event that would leave the world economy in tatters. Economist Milton Friedman famously predicted the euro zone would fail when confronted with its first systemic crisis because it was a fair-weather construction.  

Asian shares mostly slipped on Monday and the safe-haven dollar rose as concerns about faltering global growth and Europe's intractable debt crisis continued to sap investor confidence, but Japanese stocks ...