HONG KONG - ASIAN markets were mostly lower on Monday following miserable jobs figures from the United States and continuing fears over the global corporate outlook.
Hong Kong lost almost three percent, while Sydney shed 1.4 per cent, Seoul more than two per cent and Singapore 1.65 per cent as investors followed a fall on Wall Street on Friday. Mumbai dived more than three per cent.
In New York the Dow Jones slid 1.6 per cent as a labour report showing the worst annual job losses since World War II raised alarms that the worst was yet to come in a deepening recession.
The US economy shed 524,000 jobs in December, in line with market expectations, driving the unemployment rate to a 16-year high of 7.2 per cent.
The weak December figures capped a year of the worst job losses since 1945, the department said. The economy bled 2.6 million jobs in 2008, with the bulk of them, 1.9 million, in the last four months of the year.
There is also trepidation ahead of a number of key earnings reports expected from some of the world's biggest companies in the United States, including aluminium giant Alcoa and chipmaker Intel.
The falls came as US president-elect Barack Obama sought to give reassurances that he will work to improve a US$700 billion (S$1 trillion) bailout for ailing banks.
Hong Kong and Shanghai were also hit by fears that banks will suffer further divestments by overseas firms following a series of pull-outs last week in some of the mainland's biggest, including China Construction Bank and Bank of China.
However, some markets bucked the trend, with Manila up by 0.7 per cent, Wellington 0.39 per cent and Kuala Lumpur 0.5 per cent.
Tokyo was closed for a public holiday.
HONG KONG Hong Kong share prices closed 2.8 per cent lower on Monday, led by falls in Chinese banks on concerns more major shareholders will sell down stakes, dealers said.
The benchmark Hang Seng Index closed down 406.44 points at 13,971.00.
Turnover was light at HK$46.26 billion (S$8.87 billion).
Bank Of China plunged 6.12 per cent to US$1.84 and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China was down 5.21 per cent at US$3.46.
CNOOC was off 4.7 per cent at US$7.10 and PetroChina dipped 4.84 per cent to US$6.68 as crude oil prices continue to fall.
SHANGHAI Chinese shares closed down 0.24 per cent on Monday as worries over the slowing economy and weaker corporate earnings weighed on sentiment, dealers said.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which covers A and B shares, closed down 4.51 points at 1,900.35 on turnover of 59.5 billion yuan (S$12.94 billion).
The Shanghai A-share index shed 4.82 points, or 0.24 per cent, to 1,995.06 on turnover of 59.3 billion yuan, while the Shenzhen A-share index gained 3.12 points, or 0.51 per cent, to 618.93 on turnover of 35.3 billion yuan.
KUALA LUMPUR At 5.00pm today, there were 231 gainers, 214 losers and 224 counters traded unchanged on the Bursa Malaysia.
The KLCI was at 923.57 up 4.50 points, the FBM2BRD was at 2,984.76 up 3.28 points, and the FBMEmas was at 6,044.19 up 25.70 points.
Turnover was at 574.572 million shares valued at RM696.535 million (S$290.2 million).
TOKYO Japanese financial markets were closed on Monday due to the Coming of Age holiday. The markets will reopen on Tuesday. -- BERNAMA, AFP, REUTERS, AP
