The Tokyo stock exchange plummeted on Thursday morning, as a result of a strengthened Japanese currency in combination with a decline on the New York stock exchange due to concerns about the American economy.
Shortly after opening, the Nikkei 225 index had fallen by more than 5 percent, which by lunchtime had ticked up to 4.9. The broader Topix index had fallen by 4.7 percent.
It was also gloomy in Hong Kong. The Hang Seng index had fallen by 2.2 percent after a few hours of trading. The Shanghai and Shenzhen composite index were down by 0.6 and 0.3 percent, respectively, at the same time.
