Asia Stocks Fall on U.S. Sell-Off

Asia Stocks Fall on U.S. Sell-Off
Wednesday, Mar. 14, 2007 By AP/HANS GREIMEL Article ToolsPrintEmail TOKYO —

Asian stocks plunged Wednesday after Wall Street chalked its second-biggest drop in four years and rattled already nervous markets worldwide.

Overnight, the Dow fell 242.66, or 1.97 percent, to 12,075.96 amid concerns about U.S. sub-prime lenders, who provide mortgages to people with poor credit.

The tumble extended weeks of international trading turmoil rooted in deepening concern about a wilting global economy. Concern about U.S. sub-prime lenders and lackluster retail sales pushed the Dow Jones industrials down 1.97 percent overnight.

Investors continued the sell-off in Asia, where stocks in Tokyo, Seoul, Singapore, Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur were all down more than 2 percent. Markets in Sydney and Shanghai lost about 1.76 percent and 1.85 percent respectively.

At the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the region's biggest bourse, the benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 512.04 points, or 2.98 percent, to 16,666.80 points. Foreign investors who bought up stocks during the recent rally led the selling, traders said.

The broader Topix index, which includes all shares on the exchange's first section, shed 49.55 points, or 2.87 percent, to 1,675.88 points.

The U.S. Commerce Department, meanwhile, said sales at retailers rose a less-than-expected 0.1 percent in February, suggesting consumer spending might be waning.

Asian stocks are particularly sensitive to any downturn in the U.S. economy, which is a major destination for the region's export-oriented manufacturers. Wednesday's slump reversed a modest recovery from even bigger losses that started late last month.

The Shanghai Composite index, the epicenter of the recent market meltdown, was down 1.85 percent, or 54.76 points, at 2,910.02 points Wednesday. The index tumbled 8.8 percent March 27, sparking a global financial market sell-off.

Elsewhere Wednesday, Hong Kong's Heng Seng index was down 2.6 percent, while Sydney's S&P/ASX 200 was 1.76 percent lower. Singapore's Straits Times benchmark had lost about 2.79 percent, and South Korea's Kospi declined 2.0 percent.

The losses underlined lingering worries about the outlook for the U.S. and global economy as well as overvalued stock prices.

While a