ASIA MARKETS: Tokyo Stocks Tumble On Yen; Results Hit Hong Kong

By V. Phani Kumar and Sarah Turner, MarketWatch

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Japanese stocks tumbled Friday as the yen firmed up a day after the new Bank of Japan governor offered few new details on future policy, while Hong Kong shares fell after weak results from PetroChina Co. and several other blue-chip firms.

Many Asia markets suffered from heightened worries over Cyprus after the European Central Bank (ECB) issued a deadline to its parliament for meeting the terms of a proposed bailout, an issue which also hurt stocks on Wall Street overnight.

Perpetual Investments head of investment research Matthew Sherwood said that if the ECB withdrew its funding, and "no new capital sources could be identified, the Cypriot banking sector would collapse, and it would be forced out of the euro zone."

Japan's Nikkei Stock Average skidded 2.4%, losing more than 2% for a second trading day this week, to rank as the region's worst performer. Exporters were hit as the U.S. dollar (USDJPY) traded under Yen95, well below its Yen96.03 level late Wednesday.

Shares of Advantest Corp (ATE) dropped 2.7%, (ATE)Fanuc Corp. (FANUY) fell 5.5% and Honda Motor Co. (HMC) gave up 2.7% on worries a firmer yen would lower their repatriated earnings.

"We still see [the dollar-yen pair] recapturing its highs, but the real test will be in two weeks, when the new Bank of Japan Governor holds his first [monetary-policy] meeting. If he fails to ease, we could see more profit-taking," said BK Asset Management managing director Kathy Lien.

Among other movers in Tokyo, Panasonic Corp. (PC) dropped 2.6%. A Nikkei news report said the company was negotiating with the labor union to cut bonuses and lengthen its work week.

Banks were also weak after new central-bank chief Haruhiko Kuroda failed to offer specifics of new policy moves at a press briefing late Thursday. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. (MTU) dropped 2.4%, and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. (SMFJY) shed 1.8%.

Seven & I Holdings Co. (SVNDY) fell 4% in the downbeat market despite a Nikkei news report tipping the owner of 7-Eleven convenience stores to post a record operating profit for the year ended in February.

Hong Kong down, Sydney up

Elsewhere in the region, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.5%, South Korea's Kospi eased back 0.1% and Taiwan's Taiex fell 0.2%, while India's Sensex dropped 0.5% in afternoon trading.

China's Shanghai Composite Index ended up 0.2% in choppy trading, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.2% following a decline Thursday, when Prime Minister Julia Gillard survived a surprise challenge to her leadership of the ruling party.

Most regional markets suffered losses this week, with the Sensex on course for a drop of nearly 4%. The S&P/ASX shed 3%, the Hang Seng Index and the Kospi lost 1.9% each, and the Nikkei shed 1.8%.

The Shanghai Composite was one exception, climbing 2.2% during the week.

In Hong Kong, shares of PetroChina (PTR) fell 1.4%, and Foxconn International Holdings Ltd. (2038.HK) shed 1%, after each posted downbeat results.

Banking heavyweight HSBC Holdings PLC (HBC), which has a significant presence in Europe, shed 1.2% amid concerns over Cyprus.

However, China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd. (CHU) jumped 3.7% after posting strong earnings for 2012.

In Sydney, National Bank of Australia Ltd. (ANZBY) rose 0.9%, and apparel company Billabong International Ltd. (BLLAY) soared 7.9% to recover losses posted the previous day.

Contracting firm Leighton Holdings Ltd. slumped 6.9% after the firm announced the resignation of its chairman and two non-executive directors, over a potential breakdown in its relationship with major shareholder Hochtief AG

In Seoul, shares of SK Telecom Co. (SKM) dropped 1.9%, extended losses in the wake of a major cyberattack believed to be the work of North Korea.

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