(RTTNews) - The stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region were trading lower for a fifth day on Friday after Wall Street tumbled overnight on economic worries. Investor sentiment in Asia remained very fragile on concerns about the health of the U.S. auto and financial sectors and the broad outlook for the global economy. Oil prices fell below $50 a barrel level for the first time since May 2005 on slowing demand for energy. In currency trading, the U.S. dollar fell to a three-week low against the yen.

U.S. stocks plunged for a second straight day Thursday to multi-year lows on the back of a worse-than-expected jobless claims report and worries that a bailout of automakers will be delayed. The major averages all closed sharply lower, with the Dow and the Nasdaq ending the day at their worst closing level since March 2003 and the S&P 500 falling to its lowest closing level since April 1997. The Dow closed down 445.0 points or 5.6% at 7,552.3, the Nasdaq shed 70.3 points or 5.1% to 1,316.1 and the S&P 500 dropped 54.1 points or 6.7% to 752.4.

On Thursday, oil prices hit levels not seen in more than three years after dour economic reports suggested a painful economic downturn. On the final day of trading for the December contract, U.S. crude futures fell $4 or 7% to settle at $49.62 a barrel, the lowest settle price since May 23, 2005. In the Asian session Friday, oil for January delivery is currently down 75 cents at $48.67 a barrel.

The U.S. dollar traded in the upper 93-yen levels in early Tokyo deals, down from Thursday’s close in the lower 95-yen range in Tokyo. In South Korea, the won was quoted at 1,500.5 a dollar compared to 1,497.0 a dollar late Thursday. The Australian dollar opened weaker at US$0.6129-0.613 and the kiwi bought US$0.5316 in early local trade compared to US$0.5409 late Thursday.

The Japanese stock market was trading lower for the fourth straight session as a stronger yen pulled exporters down. At 7.53 P.M. ET, the benchmark Nikkei 225 Index was losing 199.07 points, or 2.58%, to 7,503.97 and the broader Topix Index of all First Section Issues was down 24.82 points to 757.46.

On the economic front, the Bank of Japan is scheduled to conclude its two-day monetary policy meeting on Friday. It marks the bank’s first meeting since October 31, when the board of governors trimmed the overnight call rate by 20 basis points to 0.30% after keeping rates on hold for the previous 22 meetings. Analysts are expecting the bank to keep rates on hold this time.

In the banking space, Mitsubishi UFJ slumped 4.58%, Mizuho Financial slid 4.02%, Sumitomo Mitsui fell 3.77% and Resona Holdings lost 1.45%. Leasing and financial services company Orix Corp. said Thursday that it will issue 150 billion yen worth of convertible bonds in order to pay down short-term debt and raise funds for investments. The company’s stock was down 12.12%.

Among export-oriented stocks, Sony dipped 2.90%, Canon shed 4.60% and Nikon gave away 5.18%. Automaker Mazda lost 4.29%, Toyota declined 3.06%, Nissan shed 6.42% and Honda dipped 4.93%. In the tech space, Advantest shed 4.08%, Fanuc declined 1.40% and Kyocera lost 3.54%.

In the oil sector, Inpex Holdings slid 6.13%, Showa Shell dipped 3.28% and Nippon Oil lost 6.06%. Trading house Marubeni slumped 11.11%, Itochu shed 5.15% and Sojitz gave away 7.09%.

Phone company NTT Corp. said on Thursday that it intends a 100-for-1 share split in January 2009 to eliminate fractional shares before the introduction of electronic stock certificates next year. The company noted that stock exchanges in Japan would halt trading in its shares from December 25 to 30. Shares of the company were down 5.56%.

The South Korean stock market was trading lower, extending its losses for the ninth consecutive trading session. However, the market has recovered some ground after it opened 2.5% lower on the back of massive Wall Street losses overnight. At 8:02 p.m. ET, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index or KOSPI was down 11.7 points or 1.2% at 925.1.

Tech stocks were mixed, with Hynix Semiconductors slumping 6.3%, market heavyweight Samsung Electronics falling 1.0%, LG Electronics rising 2.6%, and LG Display gaining 1.4%.

Automaker Hyundai Motor fell 2.2%, but top steelmaker POSCO rose 0.4%.

In the financial sector, Shinhan Financial Group tumbled 7.2%, KB Financial Group slumped 10.0%, Woori Finance plunged 5.9%, and Mirae Assets & Securities sank 3.0%.

The Australian stock market was trading sharply lower Friday, at fresh four-and-a-half year lows, following a steep triple-digit loss on Wall Street overnight. At 8:11 p.m. ET, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index was losing 115 points or 3.44% to 3,238, after losing 4.19% on Thursday. The broader All Ordinaries index was falling 112 points or 3.36% to 3,221.

On the economic front, the markets have very little reports to digest on Friday.

Among banking stocks, Commonwealth Bank of Australia fell 3.45%, and ANZ Banking Group dropped 4.15%, while National Australia Bank plunged 4.36%. Westpac fell 5.13%, and investment bank Macquarie Group lost 1.89%.

In the resources sector, index leader BHP Billiton dropped 3.60%, and Rio Tinto fell 4.45%. Gold miners were mixed, after gold closed higher on Thursday. Sino Gold climbed 7.14%, and Lihir Gold rose 2.77%, while Newcrest Mining fell 2.37%.

Among energy stocks, Oil Search plunged 7.10%, Santos fell 3.31%, and Woodside plummeted 7.86%.

In the retail sector, David Jones added 1.62%, and, Coles’ owner Wesfarmers advanced 1.65%, while giant retailer Woolworths fell 2.64%.

The New Zealand stock market opened lower, following the negative lead from the Wall Street, where U.S. stocks tumbled overnight on concerns over the ailing U.S. auto industry and a disappointing economic data. The benchmark NZX 50 index was down 47.12 points or 1.78% to 2597.54 shortly after the market opened for the day, while the broader NZX All Capital Index lost 45.49 points or 1.69% to 2640.04.

In the early trading on the New Zealand stock market on Friday, the country’s top ranked share Telecom plunged 2.16%, while the second ranked Contact Energy dropped 1.47%. Fletcher Building, the third best stock, slipped 3.28%.

In the retail sector Hallenstein Glasson and the Warehouse remained unchanged. Jewelry retailer Michael Hill International dropped 5.17%, as Pumpkin Patch slipped 1.18%.

In the energy sector Vector eased 0.52%, while TrustPower remained unchanged in the early trading on Friday.

Among the dual listed issues AMP, APN News & Media, Lion Nathan and Telstra remained unchanged. Australia and NZ Banking Corp gave up 3.23%, as Westpac Bank fell 2.41%.

Other Asian markets:-

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was down 3.2% at 11,904; China’s Shanghai composite index was down 1.7% at 1,983; Singapore’s Straits Times index was down 1.2% at 1,594; Taiwan’s weighted index was down 2.3% at 3,997; and Malaysia’s KLCI was down 10.9 points at 854.

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Posted in Categories: Australia, Economy, Japan, New Zealand, Releases, USA.

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