ASIA MARKETS: Asia Stocks Dive On Cyprus Deposit Levy

By Sarah Turner, MarketWatch

SYDNEY (MarketWatch) -- Asia stocks reacted badly on Monday to details of a bailout of Cyprus over the weekend -- with U.S. stock-index futures and the euro also sharply lower -- as investors fretted about the potential implications of a decision to levy private bank deposits.

Japan's Nikkei Stock Average tumbled 2.1%, South Korea's Kospi lost 0.7%, and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index fell 1.5%.

In Chinese trading, the Hang Seng Index dropped 1.7%, while the Shanghai Composite Index gave up 0.7%.

U.S. index futures also took a hit, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) contract traded 138 points, or 1%, lower at 14,295. Nasdaq (RIXF) futures fell 34.25 points, or 1.2%, to 2,756.25, while those for the S&P 500 (SPX) lost 20 points, or 1.3%, to 1,533.60.

In the currency markets, the euro (EURUSD) fell sharply to $1.2895 in Asian trading hours Monday, down from $1.3076 in late North American trading Friday.

The losses for Asian stocks and other securities came after Cyprus announced plans for a one-off levy on bank deposits in exchange for equity in the banks as part of a deal that would have international creditors provide 10 billion euros ($12.9 billion) to shore up the island nation's finances.

Under the bailout, Cyprus would also sell government assets, raise corporate tax rates and impose a tax on interest earned in Cypriot banks.

The move would mark the first time in the euro-zone debt crisis that private citizens' bank deposits would be tapped, and Morgan Stanley said the introduction of the levy "seems to have broken another taboo."

The strategists went on to question whether "senior bank debt is the next taboo to be broken, given the linkage with deposits."

Morgan Stanley recommended selling high-beta banks and said that, broadly, "investors should expect material market weakness in the near term." ((Read more analyst reaction to the Cyprus deposit levy: http://blogs.marketwatch.com/thetell/2013/03/17/cyprus-deposit-levy-shakes-up-markets/.))

Asia movers

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index's top-weighted component -- London-based HSBC Holdings PLC (HBC)(HBC)-- fell 2.4%, with the Financial Times also reporting that the bank is planning "thousands more job cuts."

Other Hong Kong-listed financial shares also showed weakness, with Agricultural Bank of China Ltd. (ACGBF) down 2.1%, China Merchants Bank Co. (600036.SH) off 1.8% and broker Haitong Securities Co. losing 2.4%.

The volatile property sector also fell n Hong Kong, with New World Development Co. (NDVLF) losing 2.9%, and China Overseas Land & Investment Ltd. (0688.HK) down 2.6% ahead of its earnings report due later in the day.

With the Cyprus news weighing on global markets, the Japanese yen (USDJPY) regained some safe-haven interest, sending the U.S. dollar back below the Yen95 mark.

Amid a rising yen and worries of another flare-up in the European debt crisis, Sony Corp. (SNE) fell 4.2%, Tokyo Electron Ltd. (TOELY) dropped 4.8%, Toyota Motor Corp. (TM) lost 2.3%, and Mitsubishi Motors Corp. (MMTOY) retreated 3.7%.

Gold futures rose $3.20 to $1,595.70 an ounce, but copper lost 7 cents to $3.45 a pound, helping to make Australian mining stocks among the worst performers in Sydney on Monday.

Among the majors, Rio Tinto Ltd (RIO) dropped 2%, while BHP Billition Ltd. (BHP) fell 1.9%.

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