Asian markets mostly rise but oil hits 11year low

Oil prices extended losses Monday with Brent hitting an 11-year low, fuelling fears about the global economy, but most Asian stock markets recovered from early losses to rally in the afternoon.
However, with Wednesday's US Federal Reserve interest rate rise now in the past, analysts said concerns about the global economy continue to keep traders cautious. 


While markets will begin winding down for the Christmas break Friday there are some key economic figures due for release this week, including US economic growth and home sales as well as Japanese inflation and spending.
Crude continued to slide as an ongoing supply glut showed no sign of easing. Figures Friday showed a rise in the number of US rigs drilling, increasing worries that output will continue apace. 


Brent sank 2.1 percent at one point to $36.09 a barrel -- its weakest since July 2004 -- and US standard West Texas Intermediate was down 1.2 percent at $34.32, levels not seen since early 2009 at the height of the global financial crisis. 


Prices have slumped by almost a fifth since December 4 when the OPEC oil producers' group decided against limiting production, despite tepid demand and the supply glut. 


The commodity has sunk more than 60 percent from above $100 in summer 2014 and prices are now at levels not seen since the financial crisis. 


"There hasn’t been any significant signs of a pick-up in demand and we haven’t seen any meaningful cuts to production," Ric Spooner, a chief analyst at CMC Markets in Sydney, told Bloomberg News. 


"Nothing has really changed in the oil market over the past couple of months apart from the price

Source: NNA