Asian Stocks Decline As Europe Concerns Resurface

Asian stock markets declined Wednesday, following an overnight slump in Wall Street as surge in Spain’s borrowing costs reignited concern over the eurozone debt crisis.

The Japanese benchmark Nikkei declined 0.83 percent or 79.28 points to 9,458.74 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.97 percent or 196.55 points to 20,159.69, while Chinese Shanghai edged up 0.13 percent.

Eurozone debt crisis once again took center stage after Spain’s cost of borrowing soared to the highest level since December. Spanish benchmark 10-year bond yields soared to 5.95 percent as doubt spread among bond investors that Europe's fifth-biggest economy will be able to service its expanding debt.

“The Minister of Economy and Competitiveness of Spain did not rule out a rescue for the country. This, alongside concern about Italian growth, pushed up both Spanish and Italian yields sharply by over 20bp. This also shows that the impact of LTRO is fading,” said a note from Credit Agricole.

In Japan, shares of the exporter companies were hurt as yen strengthened against major counterparts on Tuesday. Toyota Motor Corp declined 1.19 percent and Honda Motor Co fell 1.80 percent, while Sharp Co plunged 3.21 percent.

Sony Corp plunged 4.48 percent after it slashed its annual forecast for the fourth time in less than a year. The company currently expects a full year loss of 520 billion yen or $6.4 billion compared to its prior estimation of 220 billion yen.

In Hong Kong, HSBC Holdings Plc declined 1.41 percent and Belle International Holdings fell 1.28 percent, while Sino Land Co plunged to 4.25 percent.