Asia shares nose dive to 19-month lows

Share markets in Asia plunged to a 19-month low on Thursday after Wall Street’s worst losses in eight months led to broader risk aversion, a rise in market volatility gauges and concerns over overvalued stock markets in an environment of rapidly rising dollar yields.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was off 3.8 percent around 0500 GMT, and earlier touched its lowest level since March 2017.

Markets in Europe are seen as unlikely to stem the bleeding, with financial spreadbetters expecting London’s FTSE to open 1.4 percent lower at 7,047, Frankfurt’s DAX to open down 1.8 percent at 11,501 and Paris’ CAC to open down 2.1 percent at 5,096.

The sell-off, which came as the head of the International Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde, said stock market valuations have been “extremely high”, erased hundreds of billions of dollars of wealth around the region.

“Equity markets are locked in a sharp selloff, with concern around how far yields will rise, warnings from the IMF about financial stability risks and continued trade tension all driving uncertainty,” summed up analysts at ANZ.

Japan’s Nikkei ended down 3.94 percent, its steepest daily drop since March, while the broader TOPIX lost around $207 billion in market value, falling 3.5 percent.

The Hang Seng Index sank 3.54 percent, falling below the 26,000 support level, with every member of the gauge declining.