Global Shares
In Turkey, the lira, stocks and government dollar bonds weakened after President Tayyip Erdogan dismissed the central bank governor, a move that fueled worries about monetary policy independence.
After a subdued open, European markets fell further after French and German surveys of purchasing managers in the manufacturing sector for April showed activity continuing to contract.
U.S. stock futures did not inspire much confidence, with S&P E-Minis down 0.6 percent and Dow futures off 0.4 percent.
