Recovery worries drag Asian markets; Nikkei slips 3%

Asian markets ended in the negative zone today on fresh worries of a global recovery.

The Hang Seng slumped 333 points (2%) to 18,165. The Nikkei dropped 287 points (3%) to 9,753.

The Straits Times slipped 27 points (1%) to 2,289. The Shanghai Composite and the Seoul Composite declined 13 points each to 2,776 and 1,399, respectively.

The Taiwan Weighted was flat at 6,221.
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(Updated at 1115 hrs0

The IMF's warning that a lot needs to be done for a global recovery, as well as poor data from Europe and US dragged the Asian markets down, even as Japanese banks showed signs of improvement in their economies.

The Hang Seng has slumped 555 points (3%) to 17,943. The Nikkei has dropped 258 points (2.5%) to 9,782.

The Straits Times has declined 43 points (2%) to 2,273. The Shanghai Composite has slipped 31 points (1%) to 2,758. The Seoul Composite has shed 13 points to 1,400.

The Taiwan Weighted is flat at 6,230.
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(Updated at 0809 hrs)

Asian markets are in red this morning, following a slump in the US markets yesterday.

The Hang Seng has punged 311 points (1.5%) to 18,188. The Nikkei has slumped 196 points (2%) to 9,843.

The Straits Times has dropped 25 points (1%) to 2,291. The Taiwan Weighted has slipped 22 points to 6,203.

The Seoul Composite and the Shanghai Composite are flat at 1,403 and 2,790, respectively.