Nikkei Falls After Abe Steps Down

Subprime turmoil now a given; traders await central banks' moves

(NEWSER) - In the wake of the Japanese agriculture minister's resignation, Asian markets stumbled today ahead of uncertain US economic data. For a change, analysts didn't point to the subprime crisis to account for the Nikkei's 0.5% slide: "After all, investors have got used to news on subprime issues," one equities trader told Reuters. More»

Stocks see biggest jump in 5 years as panic gives way to optimism

(NEWSER) - The global equities sell-off ground to a halt today as Asian stocks had their biggest gains in five years. Responding to Friday’s cut in the US Federal Reserve’s discount rate, Japan’s Nikkei 225, Hong Kong's Hang Seng and South Korea's Kospi indexes all saw huge gains as panic over the US subprime mortgage crisis largely subsided. More»

Nikkei drops 4.5%, Europe opens down

(NEWSER) - Stocks in Asia and Europe plummeted today amid global fears for the auto industry and hesitation that this week's G20 summit in London might not deliver on ambitious goals. In Tokyo the Nikkei dropped 4.5%, with Toyota, Honda and Nissan all posting substantial falls. At midmorning stocks in London, Paris and Frankfurt were all down, with automakers and banks leading losses. More»

Stocks tumble for second straight day

(NEWSER) - Jitters over the US economy led to a major sell-off in Asian markets for the second straight day, with Australia's benchmark index closing down 7.1%—the biggest single-day loss in nearly 20 years. India's Sensex index skidded 10%, triggering a shutdown, but rallied to close down 4.6%. Japan's Nikkei and the broader Topix index finished 5.7% lower, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index slumped 8.7% the day after global indexes suffered their biggest plunge since 9/11. More»

(NEWSER) - Asian stocks fell yet again today as the subprime mortgage crisis continued to reverberate across global markets. The latest dip came when E*Trade Financial Corp and Bank of America announced the credit crisis was hurting earnings, Bloomberg reports. The biggest fear is that the rising cost of credit will halt consumer spending and trigger a global slowdown. More»