Asian markets slipped into the red Wednesday, unable to sustain early gains, as investors nervous about the strength of the U.S. economy and global credit markets dumped stocks in afternoon trading.
Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index fell 1.1 per cent to 13,111.9, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong fell 1.4 per cent to 23,984.6. Shanghai's composite index plunged 5.5 per cent to 3,413.9, capping a 3-day streak of advances.
Construction companies were among the notable losers as Obayashi Corp. took its sector peers down with it.
Obayashi dropped 9.4 per cent after cutting its group net profit outlook for the fiscal year ended March 31. Obayashi said a slowdown in construction due to higher prices for materials contributed to the reduction.
Property companies were also lower. Tokyu Land lost 8.5 per cent after a ratings downgrade from Credit Suisse.
Elpida Memory bucked the overall market weakness, gaining 5.2 per cent after saying it had raised the prices of some of its chips as much as 10 per cent in negotiations with customers.
Chinese financial stocks also fell sharply following recent gains. Industrial & Commercial Bank of China fell 4.6 per cent. Shanghai Pudong Development Bank fell 7.8 per cent. Bank of China fell 3.9 per cent.
Elsewhere:
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 declined 0.9% to 5,520.20, after climbing as high as 5,610.10 earlier in the day.
New Zealand's NZX 50 index lost 0.8% to 3,575.45.
Taiwan's Weighted index slipped 0.1% to 8,667.93.
Thailand's SET index gave up 0.5% to 823.16.
India's Sensitive Index, or Sensex, rose 0.2% to 15,625.66, after wavering between positive and negative zones.
South Korean stock markets were closed for the country's parliamentary elections.
with files from other wire services
