Asian Markets are set to fall after U.S. stocks retreated, following a two-day advance for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, amid concern European officials were failing to make progress in taming the debt crisis and as financial companies tumbled. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished 100.13 points lower, or 0.84%, at 11,766.30 with financial stocks the worst performing sector in thin trade today.. The S&P500 fell 14.31 points, or 1.17%, to 1205.35, while the Nasdaq dropped 32.19 points or 1.26%. Equities rose the last two days of the week as data on jobless claims and manufacturing offset concern Europe’s crisis is escalating. Energy producers dropped 4.9% in the week, the most among 10 sectors in the S&P 500. Equities slumped today as European Central Bank President Mario Draghi cited substantial risks to the economy and said the ECB can’t step up government bond purchases under its founding piece of legislation. Germany continued to oppose an early decision to raise the limit of 500 billion euros on overall emergency aid. The euro fell for the first time in three days against the dollar before Spain sells securities later today as European finance ministers attempt to address the region’s debt crisis. The euro weakened 0.2 percent to $1.3016 at 2:06 p.m. in New York. WTI Oil prices rose on Monday, reversing earlier losses as the dollar reversed direction after gains made earlier in the day on news of the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong il. January Crude Futures were 56 cents firmer at $94.09 a barrel. The benchmark lost 5.9% in the previous week. Gold prices eased on Monday, as concerns that the euro zone debt crisis will hurt global growth kept the euro under pressure, although the precious metal lifted from early lows as the single currency pared some losses against the dollar.

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