GONNA BE A TOUGH DAY ON WALL STREET TOMORROW. MAYBE WORSE THAN TODAY.
Asian stocks plunge on credit fears
By CARL FREIRE, Associated Press Writer 10 minutes ago
TOKYO - Asian stocks plunged Friday as fallout spread across the region from global market turmoil set off by a U.S. mortgage problem. The Bank of Japan joined its U.S. and European counterparts in pouring in cash into money markets to calm growing jitters.
The Nikkei 225 index dropped 406.51 points, or 2.37 percent, to close at 16,764.09 points on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The broader Topix index of all shares on the exchange's first section sank 49.88 points, or 2.96 percent, to 1,633.93 points.
The Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 80.19 points, or 4.2 percent, to 1,828.49, with issues falling across the board, especially financial stocks. The Kospi fell as much as 5 percent in intraday trade.
The plunge came after the Dow Jones industrial average fell 387.18, or 2.83 percent, to 13,270.68 in New York on Thursday after a French bank announced it was freezing funds that invested in U.S. subprime mortgages, deepening fears of a credit crunch.
Amid Friday's decline, the Bank of Japan said it injected 1 trillion yen ($8.39 billion) into money markets to curb rises in a key overnight interest rate.
The injection followed similar moves by its European and U.S. counterparts overnight.
The European Central Bank provided nearly euro95 billion ($130.8 billion) to money markets, the bank's biggest infusion ever.
The U.S. Federal Reserve also added a larger-than-normal $24 billion in temporary reserves to the U.S. banking system.
South Korean blue chip stocks including Samsung Electronics Co., the country's largest corporation, Posco, the world's fourth-largest steelmaker, and Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., the world's largest shipbuilder, declined.
Samsung fell 2.9 percent to 603,000 won ($647), Posco slid 6.8 percent to 490,000 won ($526), and Hyundai Heavy declined 6.9 percent to 324,000 won ($348).
Moves in international markets affect the Korean index, said Kang Moon-sung, a strategist at Korea Investment and Securities Co.
"So no one is confident this level is (the) bottom," Kang said.
The index has been on a tear for most of this year, rising as much as 40 percent. Last month, the benchmark closed past 2,000 for the first time.
Japan's government spokesman Yasuhisa Shiozaki tried to play down the fears about the fallout on the world's second largest economy.
"Our economy is recovering smoothly, spurred by private sector demand," Shiozaki told reporters Friday. "The government will continue to closely watch share prices and overall economic indicators," he said.
Asian markets across the region have followed the general slump.
Hong Kong's blue chip Hang Seng Index was down 3.0 percent midday at 21771.94.
Singapore's Straits Times Index was down 2.89 percent by midday at 3,314.37.
The Phillipine benchmark index was also off 3 percent, and the standard market measure in Australia was down 3.1 percent.
--------------
Asian stocks plunge on credit fears
By CARL FREIRE, Associated Press Writer 10 minutes ago
TOKYO - Asian stocks plunged Friday as fallout spread across the region from global market turmoil set off by a U.S. mortgage problem. The Bank of Japan joined its U.S. and European counterparts in pouring in cash into money markets to calm growing jitters.
The Nikkei 225 index dropped 406.51 points, or 2.37 percent, to close at 16,764.09 points on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The broader Topix index of all shares on the exchange's first section sank 49.88 points, or 2.96 percent, to 1,633.93 points.
The Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 80.19 points, or 4.2 percent, to 1,828.49, with issues falling across the board, especially financial stocks. The Kospi fell as much as 5 percent in intraday trade.
The plunge came after the Dow Jones industrial average fell 387.18, or 2.83 percent, to 13,270.68 in New York on Thursday after a French bank announced it was freezing funds that invested in U.S. subprime mortgages, deepening fears of a credit crunch.
Amid Friday's decline, the Bank of Japan said it injected 1 trillion yen ($8.39 billion) into money markets to curb rises in a key overnight interest rate.
The injection followed similar moves by its European and U.S. counterparts overnight.
The European Central Bank provided nearly euro95 billion ($130.8 billion) to money markets, the bank's biggest infusion ever.
The U.S. Federal Reserve also added a larger-than-normal $24 billion in temporary reserves to the U.S. banking system.
South Korean blue chip stocks including Samsung Electronics Co., the country's largest corporation, Posco, the world's fourth-largest steelmaker, and Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., the world's largest shipbuilder, declined.
Samsung fell 2.9 percent to 603,000 won ($647), Posco slid 6.8 percent to 490,000 won ($526), and Hyundai Heavy declined 6.9 percent to 324,000 won ($348).
Moves in international markets affect the Korean index, said Kang Moon-sung, a strategist at Korea Investment and Securities Co.
"So no one is confident this level is (the) bottom," Kang said.
The index has been on a tear for most of this year, rising as much as 40 percent. Last month, the benchmark closed past 2,000 for the first time.
Japan's government spokesman Yasuhisa Shiozaki tried to play down the fears about the fallout on the world's second largest economy.
"Our economy is recovering smoothly, spurred by private sector demand," Shiozaki told reporters Friday. "The government will continue to closely watch share prices and overall economic indicators," he said.
Asian markets across the region have followed the general slump.
Hong Kong's blue chip Hang Seng Index was down 3.0 percent midday at 21771.94.
Singapore's Straits Times Index was down 2.89 percent by midday at 3,314.37.
The Phillipine benchmark index was also off 3 percent, and the standard market measure in Australia was down 3.1 percent.
--------------
.
, we are +5 now!
