Japanese stocks reversed from big gains to a heavy loss after the Bank of Japan expanded its stimulus efforts
Stocks in Asia ended lower across the board today, following suit with
Wall Street's dismal Thursday finish. Tokyo-listed stocks finished a volatile session sharply lower, with the Nikkei tumbling 1.9% after the Bank of Japan decided to ramp up its ETF purchase plan. Elsewhere, continued weakness in energy stocks kept other major regional indexes under pressure, offsetting a well-received report on Chinese home prices. By the close, Hong Kong's Hang Seng gave up 0.5%, South Korea's Kospi lost 0.1%, and China's Shanghai Composite settled fractionally lower.
European markets are also trading in the red, even as the dollar's retreat against the Japanese yen sparks a rebound in copper and gold prices. Instead, traders are eyeing an ongoing dip in Brent crude futures, and steep sell-offs in the U.S. and Japan. At last look, the French CAC 40 is off 1.3%, the German DAX is down 1.2%, and London's FTSE 100 has dropped 0.6%.
