Japan's Nikkei average slid 3.5 per cent today, hitting a four-month closing low, after General Motors warned of possible bankruptcy and as concerns intensified over the US financial sector.
The benchmark Nikkei shed 260.39 points to 7,173.10, while the broader Topix dropped 2.7 per cent to 721.39, a fresh 25-year low.
Japan's Nikkei average dropped 3.5 per cent to hit a four-month closing low today, with shares falling across the board, after General Motors warned of possible bankruptcy and concerns intensified over the US financial sector.
Japan's Financial Services Agency plans to extend curbs on short-selling of stocks beyond the end of this month, two sources familiar with the matter said, but the news appeared to have little impact on the stock market, analysts said.
Market participants have said buying by what they believe to be public pension funds has been supporting the benchmark when it approaches the 26-year low of 6,994.90 hit in late October.
US stocks slid yesterday with the Dow and S& P falling to 12-year lows, with shares of Citigroup, once the world's largest bank by market value, trading below $1 for the first time.
In Tokyo, Monex Group Inc lost over 7 per cent after a newspaper reported Citigroup plans to sell its 26 per cent stake in the Japanese online broker as part of the struggling US bank's efforts to raise cash.
Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd tumbled 7 per cent after the maker of Subaru cars said it has applied for a low-interest loan offered by the state-run Development Bank of Japan to finance its business.
The benchmark Nikkei ended down 260.39 points at 7,173.10.
On the week, the Nikkei lost 5.2 per cent, its worst performance since the week ending January 23rd.