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.