EFL. This may be nothing, but the Asian economies seem particularly fragile right now. At any rate it bears watching
Asian stocks slumped after oil prices climbed to a 21-year high, threatening to slow global economic growth. Samsung Electronics Co. and Advantest Corp. led declines. `A rise in oil prices would mean a profit squeeze for companies, which isn’t good news,’’ said Kiyohide Nagata, who helps manage about $3.2 billion at Invesco Asset Management (Japan) Ltd. in Tokyo. Taiwan’s Taiex Index tumbled 5 percent after China warned President Chen Shui-bian three days before his inauguration for a second term that he must accept Chinese sovereignty or ``face destruction by playing with fire.’’ India’s Mumbai stock exchange halted trading for an hour after the Sensex slid 10.9 percent. |