Asia stocks wilt hours before US fiscal cliff hits

BANGKOK--With just hours left before the U.S. hits the fiscal cliff, investors on the other side of the world sold off stocks to lock in profits just in case budget negotiations in Washington fail.

American political leaders face a Monday night deadline to reach an agreement before steep tax increases and spending cuts begin to take effect Jan. 1. The cuts and increases would come at a time when the U.S. economy is still struggling to recover from the last recession.

Democrats and Republicans have failed so far to reach a budget deal despite intense negotiations. President Barack Obama says any deal must include higher taxes for the wealthiest Americans. Republicans, meanwhile, have been demanding deeper spending cuts than Democrats want to make.

Much of the impasse centers on how to address the automatic tax increases that take effect in 2013. That's when tax cuts first enacted under President George W. Bush, and extended under Obama, are scheduled to expire. That would drive taxes up for nearly all Americans and deplete the already fragile economy of US$536 billion. And budget cuts of 8 percent or 9 percent would hit most of the federal government, totaling about US$110 billion.

Some economists predict the tax-and-spending effects of the fiscal cliff could eventually throw the economy into recession — although if the deadline passes, politicians still have a few weeks to keep the tax hikes and spending cuts at bay by repealing them retroactively once a deal is reached.

Still, the failure to adhere to the deadline will be bad for investor confidence, according to Francis Lun, managing director of Lyncean Holdings in Hong Kong.

“I think the market reaction to that will be very negative. This means the U.S. will never be able to bring its house in order. And the deficit will continue to accumulate,” Lun said. “No meaningful reform and no solution in sight. You can throw confidence out of the window.”

The uncertainty drove down stock markets on the last trading day of the year. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.5 percent to close at 4,648.90, with profit-taking driving the market's direction, analysts said.

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