GLOBAL MARKETS - Asia stocks slip as oil hovers near record

By Kevin Plumberg

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Asian stocks slipped on Friday as record high crude oil prices threatened to jeopardise earnings and curb consumer spending, with the uncertain economic outlook following U.S. jobs data boosting safe-haven government bonds.

This week has been punctuated by stagflation fears and deteriorating sentiment after the Dow Jones industrial average slipped into a bear market this week, down more than 20 percent from October highs, joining Asia markets and pushing investors into safety-first mode.

The unfavourable combination of feeble growth and high inflation known as stagflation has caused many analysts to adjust downward their expectations for regional equities and investors to pull back on their willingness to take risks for higher returns.

"Asia is suffering from its own inflationary bout. That is the most important feature right now because it is forcing monetary policy to be tighter at a time when headwinds from the U.S. are increasing," said Sanjay Mathur, an economist with Royal Bank of Scotland in Singapore.

"All this contributes to the rise in the risk premium in Asia assets."

Japan's Nikkei share average fell for a 12th day in a row, after posting their longest string of losses in 54 years, dragged down by technology firms such as Tokyo Electron and Advantest Corp.

The pan-Asia MSCI index fell 0.2 percent, adding to the year's 16.5 percent decline.

Asia-Pacific shares traded outside of Japan were largely steady, according to an MSCI index, but were hovering around a 10-month low.