Asian stocks fall due to Middle-East unrest, Japan quake

Tokyo, Mar. 14 (ANI): Maximum Asian shares fell last week, dragging down a regional benchmark index since August, as unrest in Middle-East escalates and massive earthquake hit Japan.

Chiyoda Corporation, a Japanese contractor that gets most of its sales from the Middle East, sank 6.2 percent last week.

China's best international carrier, Air China Ltd, lost 2.8 percent in Hong Kong.

BHP Billiton Ltd, the world's biggest mining company, dropped 6.5 percent in Sydney.

"The quake and fires in Tokyo only added to the regional bearish sentiment, sending the Nikkei into a tailspin for the close as Tokyo brokers canceled orders and staff left buildings," said Gavin Parry, managing director of Parry International Trading Ltd in Hong Kong.

"It's even more uncertainty that could weigh on markets," the China Daily quoted him as saying.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 3.1 percent to 135.03 last week, its biggest drop since the week ending Aug 13.

The gauge rose 1.9 percent last week as better than estimated economic data from South Korea to the US eased concern about surging oil prices following tension the Middle East.

Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average fell 4.1 percent, extending declines in the final 14 minutes of trading following the 8.9-magnitude earthquake that struck the nation.

Australia's S and P/ASX 200 Index dropped 4.5 percent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slipped 0.7 percent and China's Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.3 percent. South Korea's Kospi Index declined 2.5 percent.

JGC Corporation, which got 34 percent of sales from the Middle East, dropped 6.5 percent to 1,759 yen.

Daewoo Engineering and Construction Co, which gets 27 percent of sales in Africa and the Middle East, retreated 3 percent to 11,200 won in Seoul.

Oil surged above 105 dollars a barrel as Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's forces escalated a war against rebels.

Shane Oliver, head of AMP Capital Investors Ltd. In Sydney, said: "The situation in the Middle East provided a trigger for the market correction."

"All of these concerns are combining and making investors somewhat nervous," he added.

All Nippon Airways Co, Asia's largest carrier, declined 1.4 percent to 281 yen in Tokyo, even after President Shinichiro Ito said the company had hedged 85 percent of its fuel needs for the current fiscal year.

Japanese shares faced losses following the earthquake and tsunami that hit the nation.

Tokio Marine fell 7.6 percent to 2,512 yen. Toyota Motor Corp lost 5 percent to 3,595 yen. Fanuc Corp sank 4.7 percent to 12,350 yen. (ANI)