Asia shares weaker on lockdown worries, banking sell-off

HONG KONG/NEW YORK, Sept 22 (Reuters): Asian shares were broadly weaker Tuesday as possible delays in expanded US stimulus and concerns about fresh pandemic lockdowns in Europe dented the recent positive sentiment towards global equity markets.
Hong Kong shares of HSBC and Standard Chartered weakened a further 2 per cent, as global banking stocks remained under intense pressure on reports about financial institutions allegedly moving illicit funds.
British lenders HSBC and StanChart were among global lenders named as having transferred more than $2 trillion in suspect funds over nearly two decades.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.68 per cent.
"Markets globally have run hard on the weight of huge liquidity, so it's not surprising to see a pullback in some valuations," said James Rosenberg, an EL&C Baillieu advisor in Sydney.
"Add in uncertainty with US elections and another COVID wave in Europe ... it unsettles investors." Australia's S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.5 per cent pressured by miners and energy stocks, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was down 0.47 per cent.
"A lot of investors felt the market had got ahead of itself given the long list of things to worry about," said Ord Minnett advisor John Milroy.
A burst of positive sentiment emerged briefly in China as the blue-chip index traded higher but the market then again slipped into negative territory.
Japanese markets were closed for a public holiday.
Early trading indicated further selling pressure on Wall Street on Tuesday, with S&P 500 futures down 0.18 per cent in early Asia and Nasdaq 100 futures off 0.29 per cent.
"We can't see any positive news on the horizon in the near-term for the markets to rebound," said Steven Leung, executive director for institutional sales at Hong Kong brokerage UOB Kay Hian.
Overnight on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.84 per cent, the S&P 500 lost 1.16 per cent, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.13 per cent.
US stocks have tumbled over the past three weeks as investors dumped heavyweight technology-related shares following a stunning rally that lifted the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq to new highs.
JPMorgan Chase & Co and Bank of New York Mellon Corp fell 3.1 per cent and 4.0 per cent, respectively, on Monday.
The coronavirus also remains front and centre of investor concerns.
New pandemic measures in the UK set off declines in airline, hotel and cruise companies in both European and US markets, spurring fears about further restrictions.
The Telegraph newspaper reported Prime Minister Boris Johnson will encourage Britons on Tuesday to go back to working from home. Any fresh coronavirus restrictions would threaten a nascent recovery and further pressure equity markets.
Concerns are also growing about a delay in stimulus measures after the US Congress has remained deadlocked for weeks over the size and shape of another coronavirus-response bill, on top of the roughly $3 trillion already enacted into law.