· European stocks slid lower Tuesday morning, as investors kept abreast of the ongoing trade tensions seen across the globe.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 fell by 0.5 in early trade, technology stocks leading the losses with a 1.6% decline while autos were the strongest performers, gaining 0.5%.

· Asian shares fell on Tuesday as weak economic indicators and an intensifying Sino-U.S. trade war inflamed concerns about global growth, supporting safe-haven assets such as bonds.

Investor focus has shifted to monetary policy this week with Australia’s central bank cutting its cash rate to a record low on Tuesday, and India tipped to ease on Thursday.

Losses across Asian equity markets on Tuesday followed falls on Wall Street overnight that saw the Nasdaq drop into correction territory. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.3%, after earlier rising as much as 0.18%.

· Valuations of Asian equities ended May at a four-month low, as regional shares slumped after the United States raised tariffs on Chinese goods, stoking concerns about a global economic downturn.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares fell 6.2% in May, its steepest monthly decline since October 2018.

· Japan’s Nikkei ended nearly flat in choppy trade on Tuesday as festering trade tensions and a stronger yen curbed risk appetite, while extended losses for index-heavy SoftBank Group added to the overall pressure on the market.

The Nikkei share average dropped 0.01% to 20,408.54, after in and out of positive territory.

Escalating trade tensions between the United States and China have sapped investor risk appetite and rattled financial markets in the past month. In Japan, the Nikkei has lost 8% since the beginning of May. Overnight, there was more downbeat news, with the Nasdaq sliding into correction mode as the index lost more than 10% from its May 3 closing record. U.S. factory activity also disappointed, with the U.S. Institute for Supply Management’s gauge of manufacturing activity unexpectedly falling in May to the weakest level in more than 2-1/2 years amid global trade tensions.

· China stocks closed lower on Tuesday as Beijing and Washington exchanged criticism over technological transfer and trade, showing little signs of resolving the year-long tariff dispute.

At the close, the Shanghai Composite index was down 1% at 2,862.28 points, while the blue-chip CSI300 index ended 0.9% lower.

Reference: Reuters, CNBC