The Asian markets took the cue from the 4.31% plunge in US equities overnight, which was accompanied by a slump in US crude prices.
“The economic situation is not so good. There is much uncertainty in the market and we expect the petrochemical market to slow down for the rest of this year,” said a source at Kumho Petrochemical, the biggest synthetic rubber producer in Asia.
At 10:41 hours Singapore time (02:40 hours GMT), Japan’s petrochemical majors - Mitsui Chemicals shed 2.50%, Mitsubishi Chemical slumped by 4.26% and Asahi Kasei fell by 3.66%, with the benchmark Nikkei 225 index falling by 324.92 points or 3.36% at 9,334.26.
In Malaysia, PETRONAS Chemicals Group slumped by 2.89%, with the benchmark Kuala Lumpur composite falling by 1.36% or 21.00 points at 1,525.41.
In Hong Kong, PetroChina was down by 4.49%, with the Hang Seng index down by 4.47% or 981.59 points at 20,903.15.
In China, the Shanghai Composite index fell by 1.86% or 49.88 points at 2,634.16.
In South Korea, LG Chemical fell by 1.56%, Kumho Petrochemical plunged by 6.68% and Hanwha Chemical slumped by 7.92%, with the KOSPI composite index down by 3.05% or 61.75 points at 1,956.72.
Recent data from the US and the debt crisis in the eurozone do not inspire confidence about the strength of the recovery of the global economy from the 2009 recession.
In the US, consumer spending fell for the first time in nearly two years, logging in a 0.2% decline, while its manufacturing sector grew at its lowest rate in two years in July.
There are concerns that the troubles in the western economies may drag down Asian economies, which managed to recover faster from the global recession, but are currently dealing with high inflation.
