Reply #21: Asian shares hit 6-week low

[Ghost Dog]

Thursday January 15, 2:54 am ET HONG KONG (Reuters) - Asian shares hit a six-week low on Thursday and safe-haven Japanese bond futures rose to their highest since Lehman Brothers collapsed in September as the U.S. banking crisis deepened, sparking fears of prolonged financial turmoil.

Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC - News) and Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C - News) shares plunged on Wednesday as investors questioned whether
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"A continued flow of bad economic data is pointing to a steeper global recession and worsening concerns about corporate earnings," said Lee Sun-yeob, a market analyst at Goodmorning Shinhan Securities in Seoul.

"Increasingly bearish prospects for global banks' results are also pressuring sentiment."

The MSCI index of Asia-Pacific shares excluding Japan (^MIAPJ0000PUS - News) dropped 5.2 percent as of 0705 GMT (2:05 a.m. EST), heading for its biggest percentage daily fall since mid-November.

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Japan's Nikkei average (Osaka:^N225 - News) dropped 4.9 percent, with Nissan Motor Co (Tokyo:7201.T - News) slipping 3.4 percent on news it will post an annual operating loss because of sliding sales and a soaring yen.

Benchmark stock markets in South Korea (KSE:^KS11 - News) dropped 6 percent, while Australia (ASX:^AXJO - News), Hong Kong (HKSE:^HSI - News) and Taiwan (Taiwan:^TWII - News) fell 4-5 percent each.

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The benchmark 10-year JGB yield fell 5 basis points to 1.210 percent.

The yen, after initially dipping on the weak Japanese machinery data, recovered. Japan's currency tends to gain in volatile times as investors unwind trades in which they borrow the low-yielding yen to invest in riskier assets.

The dollar slipped 0.2 percent from late U.S. trade to 88.88 yen.