Japan’s Nikkei index fell 12.4 percent on Monday, while the broader Topix index was down 12.23 percent.
The Nikkei fall is the index’s worst since “Black Monday” in October 1987, when it plunged 14.9 percent.
The Seoul stock exchange was down 10.75 percent, and in Taiwan the decline was over 8 percent. In Singapore there was a decrease of 4 per cent and in Sydney of 3 per cent. In Taipei, a press conference will be called on Monday to try to calm the market.
The biggest losers are large technology companies, among them TSMC in Taiwan, which accounts for large parts of the world’s production of computer chips. TSMC’s share price is down 10 percent.
Fear of recession
Already at the opening of the stock exchange, the indices on the Tokyo Stock Exchange plunged by 7 per cent. Since peaking on July 11, the Nikkei index has fallen more than 20 percent, and the fall since Friday is the steepest ever in two days.
The decline on Monday is linked to weak job figures from the US which contribute to fears of a recession, as well as currency developments in Japan, where the yen strengthened against the US dollar to the highest level since January following an interest rate increase.
– The employment figures in the US for July were weaker than expected, which increases the fear that the US economy will weaken more than expected. This leads to sales in a wide range of shares, writes IwaiCosmo Secutiries.
The Hong Kong stock exchange also started the day with a decline, but the fall was not as steep as in Tokyo. The Hang Seng index was down 1.59 percent in morning trading on Monday.
Svake tall i USA
The New York stock markets fell on Friday when figures for July showed a significantly weaker labor market than expected. The Dow Jones index was down 1.5 percent, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq fell 2.4 percent. European stock markets also fell.
The decline began just days after New York stock prices hit their highest level in months after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said inflation had fallen enough to warrant a rate cut.
Weak figures for industrial production, however, create fears in the market that Powell has delayed lowering interest rates for too long, and that the US economy may be heading for recession, with rising unemployment and weaker consumption.
The sharp decline in Asia is a harbinger of a difficult day on the European stock exchanges as well. Preliminary figures before the stock exchanges open suggest that the decline from Friday will continue.
On Monday morning, the Norwegian krone had weakened in the wake of the turmoil in international trade, and it did not help that the price of a barrel of oil fell by $3 on Friday.
#Stock #markets #Asia #free #fall #worst #day #years #Tokyo
2024-08-07 01:41:38