Asian stocks dropped sharply Wednesday, upended as concerns deepened that the region may get caught up in problems linked to global credit markets.
In Tokyo, Nikkei 225 index ended 2.2% lower at 16,870.98 while in Hong Kong, the blue chip Hang Seng Index declined 3.2% to 22,455.36.
Shares of Mizuho Financial tumbled 9% and Mitsubishi UFJ dropped 4.7% on Tuesday's earnings reports. Mitsubishi UFJ's profit fell 31%, while Mizuho's results showed its profit cut nearly in half.
Exporters also gave ground on the Japanese yen's rally against the U.S. dollar. The greenback slipped to 118.02 yen in Tokyo, compared with 118.55 yen in New York late Tuesday.
Against this backdrop, Sony surrendered 2.9% and Toshiba Corp. declined 5.4%. One exception was digital camera and printer maker Canon Inc., which rose 0.8% after a share-buyback offer announced Tuesday.
ELSEWHERE:
TAIPEI: the Taiwan Weighted index dropped 4.3% to 8,891.88.
SYDNEY: Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index ended 3.3% lower at 5,941.20, with shares of Macquarie Bank slumping 10.7%. Shares of other financials also fell in Sydney: National Australia Bank's dropped 3.3% and Commonwealth Bank of Australia slipped 3.7%.
With files from wire services
