Global stocks sink as investors fret over Obama win

The index ended the day 2.36% lower at 12,932, the first time in three months it has closed below 13,000, as markets feared financial disaster could engulf the US. Some $600bn in Bush-era fiscal tightening measures are due to hit the US economy at the start of 2013 unless a deal is reached. The S&P 500 shed 2.37% to close at 1,394, while Asian markets also saw hefty falls overnight. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 2.42% to trade at 21,654, while the Japanese Nikkei shed 1.51% to reach 8,837. Hours after Obama’s decisive victory over challenger Mitt Romney, markets in New York bega...