Most Asian markets fall on Bhutto death
Updated: 2007-12-28 20:49
BANGKOK, Thailand - Most Asian markets fell Friday amid anxiety over the assassination of Pakistani opposition leader Benazir Bhutto and lingering worries about the outlook for the US economy.
Bhutto's death on Thursday, just ahead of Jan. 8 elections, sent shock waves through international markets on worries that global instability may follow, although some analysts said the impact is likely to be limited.
"The sudden event has caught worldwide attention because Pakistan is not any other developing country. It is a nuclear-power country. However, we view the current response to the event to be short-term," Westcomb Securities said in a note.
While Pakistan's stock market was closed, the market reaction in neighboring India was muted. Mumbai's Sensex index dipped 9.77 points, or 0.05 percent, to close at 20,206.95.
In Tokyo, Japan's stock market wrapped up the year with a sharp drop. The Nikkei 225 index fell 256.91 points, or 1.7 percent, to 15,307.78 points.
For the year, the Nikkei lost 11.1 percent, its first annual decline in five years.
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