Stocks lost more ground in Asia on Tuesday, with investors unable to shake off worries about Europe’s debt woes and the health of the U.S. economy, pushing down banks and energy companies.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 average stumbled 193.89 points, or 2.2%, to finish at 8,590.57, marking its low point for the year.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 94.10 points, or 0.5%, to 19,710.50
European shares tumbled on Monday, as a U.S. lawsuit and fresh worries about the region’s sovereign-debt woes sent financial stocks deep into the red.
Following those European losses, Asian financial firms lost ground Tuesday, with HSBC Holdings PLC down 1.9% in Hong Kong, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. down 3.4% in Tokyo, and Westpac Banking Corp. down 2.3% in Sydney.
The latest signs of discord in Europe’s efforts to deal with its sovereign-debt woes included reports of a hiatus in talks between Greece and its financial-aid partners, as well as reports of pressure on Italy to step up its austerity measures.
Asia’s concerns over Europe and the U.S. were highlighted by the Reserve Bank of Australia’s decision Tuesday to keep interest rates unchanged, citing uncertainty in the global markets.
Energy companies also came under pressure in Asia, fueled in part by a drop in crude-oil futures, with Oil Search Ltd. down 2.8% in Australia, and JX Holdings Inc. down 2.9% in Japan.
Hong Kong-listed Cnooc Ltd. recovered from earlier losses to finish 0.3% higher, after plunging Monday on news of a halt at one of its key oil fields.
Other resource-sector shares also gave ground, with Sydney-listed BHP Billiton Ltd. losing 2.2%, and Aluminium Corp. of China Ltd. down 3.5% in Hong Kong.
Oil and copper futures were lower in electronic trading Tuesday, with investors fretting about possible demand trends if the U.S. economy softens further. Last week’s U.S. jobs data proved disappointing for investors hoping for signs that the economy there isn’t heading into another recession.
Among other notable movers, shares of Toshiba Corp. plunged 5.1% in Tokyo after a Wall Street Journal report that it may buy another 20% of Westinghouse Electric Co.
In other markets:
Shanghai’s CSI 300 Index shed 20.51 points, or 0.8%, to 2,723.30
Korea’s Kospi Index dropped 19.12 points, or 1.1%, to 1,766.71
Taiwan’s Taiex Index plummeted 184.38 points, or 2.4%, to 7,367.19
Singapore’s Straits Times Index inched 1.16 points to 2,774.33
New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index jettisoned 22.57 points, or 0.7%, to 3,270.56
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index lost 66.40 points, or 1.6%, to 4,075.50
