Major Asian stock markets end week lower

Major Asian stock markets end week lower

HONG KONG (AP): Most Asian stocks markets ended the week lower Friday, dragged down by steep declines overnight on Wall Street.

South Korea shares closed sharply lower, with the key index slumping more than 4 percent as the tumble on Wall Street caused foreign and local institutional investors to sell heavily, analysts said.

They said that the ruling party's failure to secure a majority in Thursday's parliamentary election had little impact on the market's decline.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 36.12 points, or 4.3 percent, to 800.89.

In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 201.58 points, or 1.8 percent, to close Thursday at 10,923.55, while the tech-laden Nasdaq Composite Index ended down 92.85 points, or 2.5 percent, at 3,676.78.

Share prices in Taiwan also tumbled as weaker U.S. stock markets continued to drive local investors away.

The Taipei market's Weighted Stock Price Index fell 287.99 points, or 3.00 percent, to 9,374.61.

In Hong Kong, the blue-chip Hang Seng Index fell 209.80 points, or 1.3 percent, closing at 16,142.76. On Thursday, the index lost 224.53 points, or 1.4 percent.

The Japanese benchmark 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average shed 91.74 points, or 0.45 percent, to close at 20,434.68. On Thursday, the Nikkei fell 306.79 points, or 1.47 percent.

Short-term investors dumped stocks as they anticipated further drops on Wall Street. The fall in the Nikkei index, which was down 165 points early in the session, was slightly offset by buying by institutional investors.

In currency trading, the U.S. dollar was quoted at 105.86 yen, up 0.10 yen from late Thursday in Tokyo and also above its late New York level of 105.83 yen overnight.

The market was closed in Thailand for a holiday.

In Singapore, share prices closed moderately higher on selective buying of blue-chip stocks by institutional investors. The benchmark Straits Times Index rose 25.86 points, or 1.2 percent, to 2,189.76.

In Kuala Lumpur, share prices closed lower on profit-taking in technology stocks. The Composite Index of 100 blue-chip stocks fell 2.64 points, or 0.3 percent, to 931.21.

In Jakarta, share prices closed lower on selling in blue chips. The Composite Index fell 1.5 percent, or 8.319 points, to 556.788.

In Manila, the Philippine Stock Exchange's main index closed lower, pushed down by profit-taking. The 30-company Philippine Stock Exchange Index fell 13.44 points, or 0.8 percent, to 1,712.54.

In Sydney, Australian shares closed generally higher, driven largely by blue-chip industrial stocks, which are back in favor, brokers said. The All Ordinaries Index rose 11.3 points, or 0.4 percent, to 3,096.0.

In Wellington, New Zealand share prices closed lower for a fourth consecutive session. The benchmark NZSE-40 Capital Index fell 13.32 points, or 0.6 percent, to 2,070.96.