World Markets Close Mostly Higher on US Rally

Markets on mainland China were mixed, with food processors up following a lifting of price controls but banks down on economic jitters. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.3 percent, while the Shenzhen Composite Index rose 1.4 percent.

People walk by a Tokyo brokerage's indicator showing foreign currencies' exchange rate against the...

People walk by a Tokyo brokerage's indicator showing foreign currencies' exchange rate against the Japanese yen Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2008. The yen stood at 93.70-74 to the dollar in late morning Tokyo trade Tuesday, compared with 93.18 yen in New York late Monday. (AP Photo/Katsumi Kasahara)

(AP)

Light, sweet crude for January delivery fell more than 4 percent, or $2.32 to settle at $46.96 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Earlier Tuesday prices briefly fell to $46.82, the lowest level since hitting $46.20 intraday on May 20, 2005.

In currencies, the euro inched up to $1.2697 in late New York trading from $1.2672 late Monday, while the British pound fell to $1.4876 from $1.4910 and the dollar slipped to 93.22 Japanese yen from 93.40 yen.

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Associated Press Writers Pan Pylas in London and Tomoko A. Hosaka in Tokyo contributed to this report.

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