Asian stocks on backfoot as concern over Delta variant saps confidence

Asian stocks started off on a weak footing on Tuesday after a largely soft performance on Wall Street and as persistent concerns over the spread of the Delta variant of the coronavirus dented sentiment and triggered falls in metals and oil prices.
Asia shares volatile as China tech worries remain

Asian share markets were volatile on Tuesday, after Australia’s central bank flagged some tapering in its quantitative easing programme and concerns over the future of China’s powerful technology sector weighed down shares.