Sony dragged Japanese stocks down to a 5 1/2-year low on Friday after the electronics maker slashed its profit forecasts. The rest of Asia slid to what looks likely to be a pessimistic end to another volatile week, as evidence that the global economy is sliding into recession grows amid weakening economic data and earnings.
US markets (Thurs)
DJIA down up 172.04 at 8,691.25
Nasdaq down 11.84 at 1,603.91
S&P500 up 11.33 at 908.11
Asian markets (Fri)
4:57am BST
Nikkei down 584.9 at 7,876.08
Topix down 50.97 at 820.73
Hang Seng down 695.39 at 1,3065.10
European markets (Thurs)
FTSE100 up 46.94 at 4,087.83
Eurofirst 300 down 1.18 at 872.72
Currencies
4:26am BST
€/$ 1.27820 (1.27890)
$/¥ 96.1000 (97.3800)
£/$ 1.60460 (1.62290)
Commodities
4:28am BST
Brent Crude (Dec08) up 0.58 at 66.50
100 Oz Gold (Dec08) down 1.00 at 713.7
Comex Copper (Dec08) down 0.75 at 179.70
Nymex Platinum (Jan09) down 44.60 at 812.6
10-year government bond yields (%)
US 3.61 (3.59)
UK 4.47 (4.47)
Germany 3.77 (3.81)
Japan 1.47 (1.51)
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