STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Wednesday, 14 November 2012

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22. EUROPEAN MARKETS UNDERPERFORM AS STRIKES HIT

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/W/WORLD_MARKETS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2012-11-14-06-12-21

AMSTERDAM (AP) -- World stock markets were mixed Wednesday, with European indexes down as strikes swept across much of the continent while Asian shares rose as China neared the climax of a once-a-decade leadership transition.

Unions coordinated work stoppages across many southern European countries to protest the austerity measures that governments have been imposing to reduce public debt. Factories and railways were shut in many countries, with a general strike in Spain in the automobile, energy, shipbuilding and construction industries. Flights were delayed around the continent due to transportation strikes.

The increasing popular resistance to austerity raises some fears that governments will have an increasingly difficult time imposing the policies needed to restore their finances.

Meanwhile, the economy keeps weakening. Official figures showed industrial output in the 17-country eurozone dropped 2.5 percent on the month in September, worse than analysts had expected.