Equities markets see declines

Most Asian markets were lower on Wednesday, worried by a report that investment bank Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER; TYO: 8675) will write down $2.5 billion more in the third quarter than previously estimated, adding to concerns over the effect of the subprime crisis. There were a couple of gains in Asia, however. In India, the Sensex added 0.11 percent to 18,512.91, while the Shanghai Composite jumped 1.21 percent to 5,843.11.

Indices seeing declines included Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, which dropped 0.15 percent to 29,333.53. In Australia the Sydney Ordinaries fell 0.38 percent to 6,652.1 while the S&P/ASX200 was down 0.4 percent to 6,634.4. The Taiex was 0.63 percent lower to 9.442.62 in Taiwan. South Korea’s Kospi index dropped 0.75 percent to 1,933.36, while The Straits Times index was down 1.25 percent to 3,649.12 in Singapore.

Tokyo’s markets were mixed on the session. The Nikkei 225 was 0.56 percent lower to 15,358.39 and the Topix index fell 0.43 percent to 1,563.86, but the Mothers market added 2.21 percent to 923.56.

European markets were also lower. The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was 0.56 percent lower to 1,549.26. In Frankfurt the Dax dropped 0.18 percent to 7,828.96 and in Paris the CAC-40 was down 0.53 percent to 5,674.67, while Madrid’s IBEX fell 1.29 percent to 15,231.3. Equities were down in London as well, with the FTSE 100 down 0.49 percent to 6,482 and the FTSE 250 falling 0.71 percent to 11,278.5.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average had lost more than 130 points at midday, falling 0.99 percent to 13,540.31. The Nasdaq Composite, meanwhile, was down 1.93 percent to 2,745.37 and the S&P 500 dropped 1.3 percent to 1,499.79.

Crude oil prices were higher after the US Energy Information Administration reported that inventories of crude oil, gasoline and distillates were all lower last week. Most metals prices, on the other hand, were down. The exception was the price of gold, which climbed in New York. Grain prices were lower on the day, as were meat and livestock prices.

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