Most stock marts in Asian cities plunge
Most stock marts in Asian cities plunge
HONG KONG (Reuter): Asian stock markets plunged across the board yesterday in reaction to the overnight fall of the Dow Jones index, but brokers shrugged off the losses as corrections following steep gains last week.
Markets in Hong Kong, Manila, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Taipei, Seoul, Bangkok, Sydney, Jakarta and Wellington were sharply lower, and most brokers cited the fall on Wall Street.
The Dow Jones 30-share index of blue chips fell 81.96 points to 4,340.64 in its biggest one-day drop since Nov. 22, 1994. Since then, the Dow industrials have climbed over 660 points.
Tokyo shares were also down. The Nikkei 225-share average ended off 171.71 points, or 1.05 percent, at 16,140.85.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index, which gained over 1,000 points in the last two weeks, opened 2.05 percent down at 8,928.45 points but recovered to 8,975.14 by midsession.
In Seoul, the index fell 4.39 points, or 0.50 percent, by the close. The previous 1995 closing low was 876.89, set on April 24.
Taiwan's weighted index ended down 0.88 points, or 0.02 percent, at 5,757.65, off an intra-day high of 5,786.98.
Singapore's 30-share Straits Times Industrials index began steady but was down 0.58 percent at 2,150.92 at midsession.
The Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange's Composite Index ended down 7.66 points, or 0.75 percent, at 1,011.62.
The Jakarta Stock Exchange Composite (JSX) Index closed 0.86 points, or 0.19 percent higher, at 458.71.
In Manila, where shares had climbed sharply last week after candidates owing allegiance to President Fidel Ramos were judged to have done well in general elections, the index closed 19.469 points down at 2,725.96.
In Bangkok, the SET index closed down 20.76 points, or 1.54 percent, at 1,323.74 after falling as low as 1,289.78 in heavy trade.
Sydney's All Ordinaries Index finished 24 points, or 1.19 percent, lower at 1996.5, close to its intra-day low of 1992.2.
On the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the 30-share BSE index ended 44.38 points higher at a provisional 3,320.90 while the composite National index closed 24.43 points up at a provisional 1,589.13.
European bourses opened sharply down and headed lower in volatile trading after a period of calm in the middle of the morning.
At 11:00 GMT, the Financial Times-Stock Exchange index of 100 leading British shares was down 31.6 points in London at 3,254.2.
In Paris, the CAC-40 share index was down 26.56 to 1,963.22.
The 30-share DAX index in Frankfurt was down 22.15 at 2064.98.