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HONG KONG, March 28: Asian stocks followed Wall Street's lead and closed lower on Wednesday with nervous investors cashing-up and taking to the sidelines ahead of a testimony by US Fed chairman Ben Bernanke.
By day's end, Tokyo had fallen 0.64 per cent, Seoul was down 0.93 per cent, Sydney fell 0.69 per cent, Hong Kong shed 0.78 per cent while Singapore was 1.0 per cent lower and Jakarta slumped 1.06 per cent.
TOKYO: Share prices closed down 0.64 per cent, losing early gains on concern over the latest weak US data and a stronger yen, which hurts exporters.
The Nikkei-225 index fell 110.32 points to 17,254.73. Volume rose to 2.24 billion shares from 1.88 billion Tuesday.
HONG KONG: Share prices closed 0.78 per cent lower tracking falls on overseas markets after weak data renewed worries over the US economy.
SYDNEY: Share prices closed 0.69 per cent lower, with investors cautious amid concerns over Iran and the US economy after another set of weak US figures.
SINGAPORE: Share prices closed one per cent lower on investor concerns over rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and fresh worries over the US economy.
KUALA LUMPUR: Share prices closed 0.96 per cent lower, ending nine straight days of gains with profit-taking sparked by the downturn on Wall Street overnight.
JAKARTA: Share prices closed 1.06 per cent lower amid profit-taking, with sentiment hurt by a fall on Wall Street overnight.
WELLINGTON: Share prices closed 0.42 per cent lower following weakness in US and major regional markets after disappointing US economic data.
The NZX-50 gross index fell 17.41 points to 4,109.87 on turnover worth 152 million dollars (108.6 million US).
MUMBAI: Share prices closed 1.83 per cent lower, tracking weak Asian and US markets, as oil prices rose due to escalating tensions in Iran.
Dealers said investors also unwound positions ahead of the monthly stock futures contract expiry on Thursday.
The 30-share Mumbai Sensex index fell 239.98 points to 12,884.34.—AFP
