Asian stock markets raced lower on Monday, falling sharply on rising concerns of a Greek sovereign default, and with Hong Kong weighed by additional worries over China’s financial health.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 Index erased 154.81 points, or 1.8%, to 8,545.48
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index collapsed 770.26 points, or 4.4%, to 16,822.20, plumbing depths unseen since mid-2009.
The selloff followed news Sunday that Greece’s Finance Ministry had approved a new budget for parliamentary review that falls short of austerity targets. This could jeopardize European aid for the debt-racked nation.
One expert said concerns that China could soon see a sharp rise in debt defaults were also hitting Hong Kong shares, with worries about a wave of bad debts recently highlighted by Credit Suisse, among others
Asked which sectors could weather the current downturn in Hong Kong and mainland Chinese stocks, he said: "It’s hard -- now is not the time to buy stocks."
While an interest-rate cut from the European Central Bank later this week could spark a rebound in Asian shares, "it will be short-lived” and only an opportunity for “very aggressive, short-term traders."
He added the Hang Seng Index could fall as low as 14,000 in the October-December quarter, with upside resistance likely at 18,500.
The European and Chinese concerns hit financial shares especially hard Monday.
In Hong Kong, Bank of China Ltd tumbled 6.5%, Bank of Communications Co. dropped 7%, China Merchants Bank Co. traded down 11.9%, and Agricultural Bank of China Ltd. lost 8.1%.
Shares of insurer Ping An Insurance Group Co. tanked 13.4%.
In Tokyo, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. fell 2.8%, Nomura Holdings Inc. gave up 4.2%, and Daiwa Securities Group Inc. surrendered 4.1%.
In Sydney, Macquarie Group Ltd. helped lead sector losses with a 6.3% plunge.
Losses over the weekend for commodity prices sent resource shares lower as well, with Jiangxi Copper Co. crashing down 11.7%, and Angang Steel Co. off 9% in Hong Kong, while Australia’s Alumina Ltd. lost 5.4% and Fortescue Metals Group Ltd fell 7.5%.
Japanese resource traders took a similar slap, with Mitsui & Co. shedding 5.3% and Itochu Corp. diving 6.3%.
The European issues sent the Japanese yen higher against the euro, which in turn hurt many major exporters. Sony Corp. was down 4.5%, Toshiba Corp. was 4.7% lower, Fujitsu Ltd. gave up 4.6%, and Mazda Motor Corp. fell 5.7%.
Among the hardest-hit Chinese property shares Monday, Agile Property Holdings Ltd. dove 18.3%, and China Overseas Land & Investment Ltd. retreated by 11.1%.
Among other movers, shares of Alibaba.com Ltd. lost less than the broader market, dropping 0.3%, after founder Jack Ma said Friday that he might be interested in buying Yahoo Inc.
In other markets;
Markets in China and Korea were off
Taiwan’s Taiex Index slumped 211.41 points, or 2.9%, to 7,013.97
Singapore’s Straits Times Index staggered 53.76 points, or 2%, to 2,621.40
New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index sliced 27.60 points, or 0.8%, to 3,315.74
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index slipped 111.60 points, or 2.8%, to 3,897.
