Asia markets fall sharply, tracking Wall Street lower amid US housing, financial worries

HONG KONG_Asia stock markets fell sharply Friday as an overnight drop on Wall Street and more concerns about the U.S. housing and financial sectors led many investors to take profits after a recent rally. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index shed almost 2 percent to 13,336.74. Benchmarks in Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore, India and Taiwan also retreated around 2 percent or more. Asia investors were partly spooked by regional news after National Australia Bank, the country's largest bank, revealed losses of 830 million Australian dollars (US$796 million) stemming from its exposure to U.S. mortgages. The write-down sent the country's main stock index tumbling 3.2 percent. Asia's downturn also tracked Wall Street, where major indexes fell 2 percent or more, including the Dow Jones industrial average, which lost more than 280... [read full story]