November 09, 2007	Friday	Shawwal 27, 1428

HONG KONG, Nov 8: Asian stocks tumbled on Thursday after big falls on Wall Street due to growing concerns that the US economy could slow amid a credit crunch, a sliding greenback and high oil prices.

The Shanghai market was one of the worst hit, sliding 4.85 per cent as trading screens across Asia turned red. The rout pushed down share prices in nearby Taiwan and Hong Kong by 3.90 and 3.20 per cent respectively.

The US remains a key destination for Asian exports but is struggling to deal with a subprime mortgage crisis, where defaults on loans extended to riskier homebuyers have hit its housing market and threaten an economic slowdown.

Share prices in Japan, Asia’s biggest economy, closed down 2.0 per cent at a two-month low.

TOKYO: Japanese share prices slumped 2.0 per cent to a two-month low as investors took fright at heavy losses on Wall Street, fresh credit market woes and a stronger yen, dealers said.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange’s benchmark Nikkei-225 index fell 325.11 points to 15,771.57, the lowest closing level since September 10.

The broader Topix index of all first-section shares declined 39.75 points or 2.55 per cent to 1,516.94.

HONG KONG: Hong Kong share prices closed down 3.20 per cent after a big drop on Wall Street overnight and amid concerns about credit market woes, high oil prices and a weaker dollar, dealers said.

They said selling pressure wilted most blue-chip stocks listed in the southern Chinese territory on a day when trading screens turned red across Asia.

The Hang Seng Index closed down 948.71 points at 28,760.22, off a low of 28,545.70 and a high of 29,009.37. Turnover was 148.86 billion Hong Kong dollars (19.10 billion US).

SYDNEY: Australian share prices closed down 2.6 pc amid a regional sell-off sparked by heavy falls on Wall Street overnight on fears about the US subprime mortgage crisis, dealers said.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index closed down 170.8 points at 6,521.6, while the broader All Ordinaries closed down 159.6 points or 2.4 per cent at 6,568.5.

Lower commodity prices, including drops in base metals and oil prices, also hit the market, dealers said.

A total of 1.8 billion shares worth around 7.8 billion Australian dollars (7.2 billion US) changed hands, with a total of 315 stocks closing up, 1,003 closing down and 339 ending unchanged.

JAKARTA: Indonesian share prices closed 1.3 per cent lower amid a heavy sell-off in Asia following a slide on Wall Street, dealers said.

The Jakarta Stock Exchange composite index closed down 35.75 points at 2,678.22, off a low of 2,640.15. Trading volume was 5.33 billion shares worth 7.5 trillion rupiah (825 million dollars).

Index heavyweight Telkom fell 200 rupiah to 11,400 and rival Indosat dropped 150 to 8,350.

WELLINGTON: New Zealand share prices fell 0.48 per cent following a sharp drop in US stocks, dealers said.

The benchmark NZX-50 index closed 20.16 points lower at 4,185.42 on heavy turnover worth 257 million dollars (198.4 million US).

The market opened up pretty weak, and there were concerns that it could be an ugly day, said Macquarie Equities NZ investment director Arthur Lim.

MUMBAI: Indian share prices fell 1.2 per cent as sentiment weakened after Wall Street plummeted overnight on fears of an economic slowdown over high crude oil prices and a weak dollar, dealers said.

The benchmark 30-share Mumbai stock exchange Sensex index closed down 230.9 points to 19,058.93 — its fourth straight day of losses.—AFP