Most Asian indexes dropped Wednesday after U.S. blue chips suffered their biggest single-day loss since March, though Shanghai shares performed strongly.
In Tokyo, Nikkei 225 index shed 143.61 points, or 0.8 per cent, to 17,858.42 points while in Hong Kong, the blue chip Hang Seng Index fell 110.70 points, or 0.5 per cent, to 23,362.18.
Losers included Toyota Motor Corp., which fell 1.33 per cent to 7,410 yen (US$61.75) and Nippon Oil Corp., which dropped 3.86 per cent to 1,121 yen (US$9.34).
Tokyo Electric Power Co. fell 1.2 per cent to 3,300 yen (US$27.50) after saying that a ceiling crane at its No. 6 nuclear reactor building at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in northern Japan was damaged by a July 16 earthquake.
ELSEWHERE:
BANGKOK: Thai shares overcame initial weakness to end higher as a proposed merger of two PTT-linked companies, Rayong and Aromatics, highlighted the value of the Thai petrochemical sector. The SET Index added 0.3 per cent at 883.65 on strong volume.
JAKARTA: Indonesian shares ended down 0.3 per cent at 2,394.57 on profit taking after recent sharp gains.
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian shares slid 0.9 per cent to 1,379.33 in heavy trade.
MANILA: Philippine shares dropped for the third day in a row due to profit-taking prompted by Wall Street's overnight retreat. The benchmark 30-company Philippine Stock Exchange Index fell 60.73 points, or 1.6 per cent, at 3,645.51.
SHANGHAI: Chinese shares ended higher in moderate trade. The Shanghai Composite Index jumped 2.7 per cent at 4,323.97 - just below an all-time high of 4,335.96 set in May.
SINGAPORE: Singapore's shares ended down as weak U.S. markets, profit-taking, and the end of a long rise in shipping and offshore stocks led to a lack of investor confidence. The benchmark Straits Times Index closed down 31.59 points, or 0.8 per cent, at 3,633.54.
TAIPEI: Taiwanese shares closed flat, weighted down by overnight weakness on Wall Street. The Weighted Price Index of the Taiwan Stock Exchange fell 4.47 points to close at 9,740.13 on heavy volume.
WELLINGTON: New Zealand's shares ended flat with strength in some blue chip stocks balancing a weaker lead from overseas markets and a high local currency. The benchmark NZX-50 closed up 0.1 per cent, or 3.7 points, at 4,324.96.
SYDNEY: Australian shares fell to their lowest level since July 19, amid investor caution after a sharp fall on Wall Street and higher than expected CPI data. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 closed down 81.8 points or 1.3 per cent at 6,340.5.
With files from wire services
