Chairman Ben S. Bernanke on April 25 said he was prepared to take further action to aid the economy if necessary, even as he signaled that he didn

The fall in European shares followed a sharp downturn in Asia where markets were also rattled by weak U.S. manufacturing figures.

The nervousness about Spain’s banks comes as the European financial crisis intensifies.

Political turmoil in Greece has increased the likelihood that it could leave the 17-country monetary union, a move that could have ripple effects throughout Europe and the world’s financial markets.

Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.8 percent to 5,295.30 and Germany’s DAX was 0.5 percent lower at 6,279.36. France’s CAC-40 lost 0.7 percent to 2,991.85.

But Wall Street looked set for a higher opening on Friday when shares of social media giant Facebook will start trading. Buyer demand is expected to be very strong. Dow Jones industrial futures rose 0.2 percent to 12,439 and S&P 500 futures added 0.2 percent to 1,304.40.

Markets were jolted by Moody’s downgrade Thursday of 16 Spanish banks, said Jackson Wong, vice president at Tanrich Securities in Hong Kong.

Moody’s said it took the action because the banks face a rising tide of bad loans linked to Spain’s recession, a gloomy real estate market and high unemployment.

“It’s very hard to predict how the euro crisis will evolve. All the news is bad, so investors like to stay on the sidelines even though stocks are very attractive right now,” Wong said.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 tumbled 3 percent to close at 8,611.31, its lowest finish in four months as signs of weakness in the U.S., a critical export market for Japanese companies, battered some of the country’s behemoth manufacturers.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 1.3 percent to 18,951.85 and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slid 2.7 percent to 4,046.50. South Korea’s Kospi tumbled 3.4 percent to 1,782.46. Benchmarks in Singapore, Taiwan and New Zealand also fell.

Mainland Chinese shares lost ground, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index losing 1.4 percent to 2,344.52. The Shenzhen Composite Index fell 1.5 percent to 940.91. Shares in ports and trading related companies led the gains, while shares in banks, shipping and defense industry companies weakened.

“The investors are pessimistic over China’s economic outlook, on top of the problems in Europe. It is more like a panic selling,” said Guo Yanhong, an analyst at Huachuang Securities, based in Beijing.

In the U.S., meanwhile, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said Thursday that its index of factory activity fell to minus 5.8 from 8.5 in April. Any reading below zero indicates contraction. Measures of new orders and employment also fell in May, the bank said. That suggests manufacturers in the region are cutting jobs.

Among individual stocks, Japanese vehicle makers were hit hard. Yamaha Motor Co. tumbled 5 percent and Mitsubishi Motors Corp. was down 5.1 percent. Toyota Motor Corp. lost 3.7 percent.

Asiana Airlines Inc., South Korea’s second-largest carrier, plunged 5.1 percent after reporting that its earnings slid in the first quarter of 2012 from a year earlier, mainly due to soaring fuel prices, Yonhap News Agency said.

Gold miners were among the gainers. Australia’s Newcrest Mining rose 3.8 percent on rising prices for the precious metal. Hong Kong-listed Zijin Mining Group Co., China’s largest gold miner, rose 3.4 percent.

Benchmark oil for June delivery was down 1 cent to $92.55 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 25 cents to settle at $92.56 in New York on Thursday.

In currencies, the euro fell to $1.2686 from $1.2714 late Thursday in New York. The dollar rose slightly to 79.30 yen from 79.28 yen.

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Follow Pamela Sampson on Twitter at http://twitter.com/pamelasampson

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Home construction is near a three-year high. And factory output has risen in three of the year’s first four months.

The data released Wednesday suggest growth in the April-June quarter is off to a good start, helped by falling gas prices and solid hiring gains. Fears of a spring slump are easing.

“It’s all very encouraging,” said Paul Ashworth, chief U.S. economist at Capital Economics. “Things look good at the moment.”

Builders broke ground in April at a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 717,000 homes, the Commerce Department said. That nearly matches January’s pace, the best since October 2008.

Construction rose for both single-family homes and apartments.

Some economists have noted that a warm winter led companies to move up some hiring and accelerate other activity _ including homebuilding _ that normally wouldn’t occur until spring. That gave the appearance that the economy had strengthened in January and February and weakened in March.

But Ashworth noted that the overall trend in housing starts has been running at roughly the same annual pace _ approximately 700,000 _ over the past six months. That’s 100,000 more on average than the pace for the previous six months.

Ashworth said the higher level suggests demand is increasing and the mild winter had less effect than some economists had thought.

“We expect starts to strengthen further this year,” Ashworth wrote in a note to clients.

Even with the gains, the rate of construction for all homes is only about half the 1.5 million annual pace that most economists consider healthy. But the increase, along with rising builder confidence and stronger job growth, is a sign that the home market may finally be starting to recover nearly five years after the housing bubble burst.

Single-family home construction is now 39 percent higher than its recession low. And developers are also anticipating more sales. Permits for single-family home construction rose 2 percent last month.

The growth in single-family home construction is important because those homes make up roughly 70 percent of the market. Since the recession, homeownership has declined while demand for apartments has surged.

Economists say continued job gains could quickly reverse that trend.

“Homebuilders are reporting stronger demand,” Ian Shepherdson, an economist at High Frequency Economics, said in a note to clients. “And while rental demand means the multi-family sector is much stronger than single family, that will change as the labor market improves further.”

U.S. manufacturing, one of the strongest areas of the economy since the recession ended nearly three years ago, also rebounded in April after a March lull.

Factory output is now 18.3 percent higher than its low hit in June 2009, the month the recession ended. It’s only 6.1 percent below its pre-recession peak.

Factories are busier in part because automakers are selling more cars and trucks. Half of April increase in factory output reflected a 3.9 percent jump in the production of motor vehicles and parts. That was the fifth straight gain at auto plants.

Production also rose at a wide range of companies in April, from makers of computers and electronics to aerospace and furniture factories.

The modest gain shows that U.S. manufacturers aren’t cutting back in the face of Europe’s financial crisis and slower growth in China.

Faster output at U.S. factories has been a key reason employers have added 1 million jobs over the past five months. It’s also helped lower the unemployment rate from 9.1 percent in August to 8.1 percent last month.

Manufacturing companies have added 167,000 jobs in that stretch. That’s roughly 17 percent of the job gains, even though manufacturing represents less than 10 percent of the economy.

More jobs, along with record-low mortgage rates and low home prices, are making home buying more attractive to some Americans.

And gas prices have dropped in the past month after surging earlier this year. So consumers have more money for other purchases. The average price of a gallon of gas was $3.73 on Wednesday, according to AAA. That’s 18 cents less than a month ago.

Some hurdles to a smooth recovery remain: Builders are struggling to compete with deeply discounted foreclosures and short sales. (Short sales occur when a lender accepts less than what’s owed on a mortgage.)

And many would-be buyers are struggling to qualify for home loans or can’t afford larger down payments that banks require.

Though new homes represent just 20 percent of the overall home market, they have an outsize impact on the economy. Each home built creates an average of three jobs for a year and generates about $90,000 in taxes, according to the National Association of Home Builders.

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An index of sentiment fell to 44 from 53 in March, the Swindon, England-based customer-owned lender said in an e-mailed report today. A gauge of consumers

Benchmark oil for June delivery was up 16 cents to $96.65 a barrel at midday Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 20 cents to settle at $96.81 in New York on Wednesday.

Brent crude for June delivery was down 44 cents at $112.76 per barrel in London.

On Wednesday, the Energy Information Administration said that increased oil imports and weaker domestic demand for petroleum helped boost U.S. oil inventories last week to 379.5 million barrels, the highest since 1990.

China reported Thursday that its imports and exports in April grew less than analysts expected, sparking investor concern crude demand may be waning in the world’s second largest economy.

Crude has slumped $10, or about 10 percent, from $106 last week amid fears the global economy may grow less than expected this year business card. Political upheaval in France and Greece this week also renewed worries about Europe’s debt crisis and weak economy.

Some analysts expect oil prices to stabilize after the recent sell-off unless the global economy deteriorates significantly further.

“One could perhaps argue that with inventories building and global oil demand conditions softer in the first quarter, prices were on the high side to begin with,” Barclays said in a report. However, “the path of least resistance in prices is likely to be a slow grind higher from here in the coming months.”

In other energy trading, heating oil was down 1 cent at $2.99 per gallon and gasoline futures slid 0.8 cents to $3.02 per gallon. Natural gas added 0.5 cents at $2.47 per 1,000 cubic feet.

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The St. Charles-based aircraft parts manufacturer reported a $4.8 million profit, or 41 cents a share, for the first quarter that ended March 31, up from a $4.2 million profit, or 37 cents a share, a year ago short term personal loan.

LMI Aerospace’s sales grew to $66.7 million in the first quarter, up 9.6 percent from $60.9 million a year ago.

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As grand prize winner, the Philadelphia-based company will soon have its bottled water sold at up to 3,800 Wal-Mart stores nationwide and on Walmart.com.

"I am thrilled," said T.J. Foltz, president of HumanKind Water, which sources its product from the Poconos Mountains. "We knew people were voting for us like crazy. But we had no idea we’d win."

Scoring a deal with the world’s largest retailer is like hitting the jackpot for a small business vendor. For Foltz, it’s especially significant since his product just launched last October.

Wal-Mart challenge draws wacky products

More important to him, though, is the exposure he hopes this win will bring to the cause behind HumanKind Water.

Foltz said 100% of net profits from its sales will go toward developing clean water wells, water filtration systems and rain catchment systems in underdeveloped communities in Haiti, Africa and Asia.

"Ten thousand kids die every day because of lack of clean drinking water and poor sanitation from contaminated water," he said. "Every one of these deaths can be prevented."

Foltz is a Christian minister who witnessed the need for clean water firsthand during trips overseas. That experience inspired him to develop HumanKind Water and devote himself fully to his company.

"Children dying is everyone’s business," said Foltz, adding that there is nothing religious about HumanKind Water. "In our mission to end this, we’re not reaching out to one faith or another."

Wal-Mart (, Fortune 500), the world’s largest retailer, is announcing the winner at a time when it’s also trying to manage the fallout from allegations that it bribed its way to dominance of Mexico’s retail industry.

Wal-Mart tries to recover from Mexico allegations

The retailer launched its "Get on the Shelf" competition January 18, giving three small businesses, entrepreneurs or inventors a first-ever chance at winning virtual shelf space through Walmart payday loans online.com. The grand prize winner also gets a spot on Wal-Mart store shelves nationwide.

More than 4,000 contestants submitted video entries of their product; the retailer let the public vote on their favorites.

The contest drew more than 1 million votes in total, said Wal-Mart spokesman Ravi Jariwala. HumanKind Water captured the highest number of votes, followed by PlateTopper and SnapIt Eyeglass Repair Kit.

PlateTopper is a 100% BPA-free plastic cover that transforms plates into airtight food storage containers. SnapIt is a patented screw kit designed to fix sunglasses and eyeglasses in 30 seconds. These two products will sell on Walmart.com, but not in stores.

All three winning products will have an online banner touting them as the contest winners, said Jariwala. HumanKind will also get a special display in Wal-Mart stores.

Wal-Mart is assessing the three winners’ marketing and production capabilities, he added, and will give the three winners help ramping up if they need it.

Holding a public contest to find a vendor is an unusual departure for Wal-Mart.

The discounter is notoriously strict in selecting products. Prospective suppliers meet with Wal-Mart’s in-house buyers at the Bentonville, Ark., headquarters in small rooms lining a bluish-gray corridor unofficially referred to as "vendor row."

There, they get an hour tops to pitch their products and convince Wal-Mart buyers why they should stock them.

But for vendors of HumanKind Water, PlateTopper and the SnapIt Eyeglass Repair Kit, all this is unnecessary.

PlateTopper will begin selling on Walmart.com on May 3, while SnapIt Eyeglass Repair Kit will start selling online in the near future. HumanKind Water will launch on Walmart.com and in its stores nationwide soon after, the store said.

Wal-Mart hasn’t made any decisions yet whether to repeat the contest in the future, Jariwala said.

"Our focus at this point is on evaluating the success of this contest," he said. 

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