It was the most agonising way for Japan to go out of the World Cup. Shinji Kagawa feels the pain of Japan's World Cup exit as Belgium skipper Eden Hazard walks past. (AFP/Jack GUEZ) Their players slumped to the turf as Nacer Chadli slammed the ball into the net at the end of a 94th-minute counter-attack, the last move of the game in Rostov-on-Don allowing Belgium to clinch a stunning 3-2 victory and a place in the quarter-finals. Among the pre-tournament favourites in Russia, Eden Hazard and the Belgians march on to a last-eight meeting with Brazil. But a crushed Japan head home having been two goals ahead midway through the second half on a steamy night on the banks of the Don River. They will feel they deserved better than this after a superbly disciplined performance, with Maya Yoshida marshalling their back line and Eiji Kawashima - a goalkeeper who has been relegated in both Scotland and France in the past three seasons - making several vital interceptions. There was … [Read more...] about World Cup: Japan fall short to exit in cruellest fashion
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European stocks turn lower as political fears resurface
Logo of the London Stock Exchange London underperformed as the British government sold a chunk of Royal Bank of Scotland at a sizeable loss, dealers said, while Frankfurt managed to just about remain in positive territory. Paris and many other eurozone exchanges also closed lower as political worries in Italy and Spain resurfaced, keeping Milan and Madrid under pressure after Italy's new leader appeared to question eurozone debt rules. Geopolitics are "still simmering in the background, from Rome to Madrid, Westminster to Washington, with populist stances continuing to challenge financial markets", said Mike van Dulken, head of research at Accendo Markets. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte on Tuesday declared that his eurosceptic government wanted to reduce the country's huge public debt "through growth", not austerity, as he made his first speech to the Italian Senate. This did little to reassure investors who have been fearing that the new Italian government could go on a collision … [Read more...] about European stocks turn lower as political fears resurface
Oil prices ease after Syria air strikes
File photo of section of an oil platform in the North Sea, around 160 kilometres east of Aberdeen, Scotland. (AFP PHOTO/POOL/ANDY BUCHANAN) Russia holding back on any military riposte helped lift Wall Street, as did strong retail sales, but European equities closed lower as the region's key currencies strengthened against the dollar. "The limited and targeted strikes in Syria that provoked no serious response from Russia were a relief to markets that were pricing in escalation," said Jasper Lawler, head of research at LCG. The United States, Britain and France carried out attacks at the weekend on alleged chemical weapons facilities, in response to what they say was a toxic gas attack by the Russia-backed Assad regime a week before. "We can understand why the oil price has tended to fall rather than gain today in response to the West's military strike against Syria," Commerzbank commodities analysts said in a note. "After all, the tough response announced by Russia has failed to … [Read more...] about Oil prices ease after Syria air strikes