Global equities waver as oil tumbles; Canada shooting weighs

Asian shares tracked Wall Street lower on Thursday, with oil falling to its lowest in more than two years as the fatal shooting of a soldier in Canada dampened an already fragile investor sentiment.

Early Wednesday, U.S. equities were off to a good start, but as oil started to turn lower after data of rising U.S. supplies, gains began to erode, and big oil companies started to decline.

Last night, a military guard died from injuries after getting shot at the National War Memorial in Ottawa, with reports of more gunfire at the adjacent Parliament building, which ignited worries about terrorist attacks in Canada.

Usually, developments such as this do not affect investor sentiment, but over the recent couple of weeks, investors seem to buy and sell shelter based on news. A measure of volatility by Chicago Board Options Exchange jumped 11% on Thursday.

The S&P 500 declined on Wednesday following its best day of the year. Back then, the S&P 500 had gained 4% in four sessions, which could have induced investors to take some profit yesterday.

Shortly, global stock markets followed suit, with all Asian markets ending red. Bourses in the Middle East were all down but Qatar. European stocks opened fairly higher.