Gloomy on Asian Markets

The leading Asian stock exchanges began Thursday's trading on a minus note.

In Tokyo, the key Nikkei 225 index had fallen by 1 per cent and the broader Topix index had dropped by 0.4 per cent.

It was also gloomy in Hong Kong as the Hang Seng index plummeted by 1.9 per cent. The composite indices in Shanghai and Shenzhen contracted by 0.8 per cent and 1 per cent, respectively.