HONG KONG - ASIAN stocks slumped more than 5 per cent on Friday after the collapse of a US$14 billion (S$20.9 billion) rescue plan for ailing US automakers threatened to further damage the world's biggest economy, sending investors scrambling to the safety of government bonds and the yen, which hit a 13-year high.

Major European stock markets were expected to fall as much as 5.3 per cent in early trade, according to UK financial bookmakers, as the unraveling rescue plan worsened investor sentiment around the world.

The suddenness of the move in the dollar/yen, which pushed the US dollar below the sensitive level of 90 yen, fed concern that Japanese officials would enter the market to stabilise their currency.

Investors bailed out of stocks and piled into US Treasuries, knocking the benchmark 10-year yield to the lowest in more than five decades, as bargain-hunting that had helped to drive up shares in the last week dried up in the face of a worsening global economic outlook.

US stock futures pointed to a much lower open on Wall Street, with S&P 500 futures down 5 per cent after the US Senate failed to reach a last-ditch compromise to bail out automakers, effectively killing any chance of congressional action this year.

Because of their shared suppliers and vendors, some economists fear the failure of one Detroit manufacturer could drag down the other two as well as many other businesses, throwing more people out of work, putting more pressure on the banking system and likely deepening the US recession.

The collapsed bailout led to weakness across commodities, everything from copper to crude and rubber, as investors speculated on the impact to the global supply chain that fuel the so-called Big Three car manufacturers - Ford Motor Co, General Motors Corp and Chrysler LLC.

'What the failure of this deal does is that it will set back sentiment not only in the US, but also set back sentiment globally. There is going to be further risk aversion going forward,' said Joseph Tan, chief Asian economist with Credit Suisse in Singapore.

The MSCI index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan fell 5.1 per cent, essentially cutting this week's gains in half. The index is down 56 per cent on the year, easily the steepest decline since the gauge started in 1988.

Japan's Nikkei share average sank 5.6 per cent, snapping four days of gains.

Shares of Toyota Motor Corp were off 10 per cent and Honda Motor Co off 12.5 per cent on worries about massive disruptions in the US economy if one or more of its automakers collapse.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was down about 5 per cent, weighed by shares of commodity-related companies. Shares of PetroChina, Asia's top oil and gas producer, tumbled 10 per cent as crude prices dropped.

Risk, once again, is sold

Even before the automaker deal fell apart in the US Senate, Asian shares had already been under pressure because of unease about the shrinking financial sector and economic malaise.

Bank of America Corp said it plans to cut up to 35,000 jobs over the next three years, while JPMorgan's chief executive described the bank's performance in the last few months as 'terrible.'

'It shouldn't come as a surprise that Asian equity markets are selling off today on news of the US auto bailout failure,' said Tim Rocks, equity strategist with Macquarie Securities in Hong Kong.

'For Asia, the major issue is how much damage is being done to earnings and balance sheets, and we won't know until February when companies announce fourth-quarter earnings,' he said.

The rapid shift out of risky assets on Friday propelled the yen higher. The US dollar fell as low as 88.40 yen the lowest since 1995, before recovering to around 89.75 yen.

The yen's spike prompted Japan's top financial diplomat, Naoyuki Shinohara, to say the currency movements were too volatile and the moves in the foreign exchange market were being watched with concern. However, Shoichi Nakagawa, the country's finance minister, said it was not considering intervening, according to Bloomberg.

The last time the Bank of Japan intervened in the market, on behalf of the Ministry of Finance, to cap the yen was in 2004.

'Without an intervention, the dollar could hit 85 yen, so Japan will likely intervene to prevent that from happening,' said Masafumi Yamamoto, head of foreign exchange strategy with Royal Bank of Scotland in Tokyo.

'The worst case scenario for Japanese authorities is that the yen's appreciation pushes down Japanese share prices which will further aggravate of the economy, and they see it happening now.' In the bond market, the yield on the benchmark 10-year note which moves in the opposite direction of the price, slipped to 2.48 per cent, the lowest in more than 50 years.

Maturities of less than a year traded at barely any yield at all, with the 3-month bill yield flitting between 1.5 basis points and zero. Year-end is usually a time when global investors and corporates pile into the highly liquid short-term US debt market to keep cash safe and dress up balance sheets.

However, the ferocity of the global economic slowdown this year has made 2009's prospects particularly grim.

US light crude for January 2009 delivery tumbled US$2.08 to US$45.90 a barrel, creeping back down toward a four-year low of US$40.50 hit earlier in the month.

Remarks from Opec President Chakib Khelil overnight about the need for a big cut in production increased speculation among traders that supply will be cut by 1-2 million barrels per day.

KUALA LUMPUR
Malaysian shares closed 0.1 per cent down on Friday in line with regional markets, but window dressing and local funds buying blue chips lifted the benchmark off its lows, dealers said.

The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index shed 8.41 points to close the day at 852.27 off an intraday low of 848.05 in the afternoon session.

Volumes traded was thin at 303 million shares with decliners leading advancers 280 to 178.

TOKYO
Japan's Nikkei stock index closed down 5.56 per cent on Friday after the US Senate failed to pass a rescue plan for ailing automakers, raising fears of fresh turmoil on Wall Street.

The Nikkei dropped 484.68 points to 8,235.87, with automakers and other exporters falling sharply after the dollar sank below 90 yen for the first time in 13 years due to fears of a collapse of the Big Three US carmakers.

SHANGHAI
Chinese shares closed down 3.81 per cent Friday due to concerns about weak fourth quarter earnings and Beijing's lack of new economy-boosting measures, dealers said.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which covers A and B shares, closed down 77.47 points at 1,954.22 on turnover of 73.4 billion yuan (S$15.9 billion).

HONG KONG
Hong Kong share prices closed down 5.5 per cent on Friday after a move to rescue struggling auto makers collapsed in the US Senate, dealers said.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index dropped 855.51 points to 14,758.39. Turnover was HK$58.77 billion (S$11.2 billion). . -- AFP, BERNAMA, AP