Asian markets lower on recession fears

Updated at: 1356 PST, Wednesday, October 22, 2008
TOKYO: Asian stock markets stumbled in early trade Wednesday after fears of a US recession and weak corporate earnings knocked shares lower on Wall Street overnight.

Wall Street's Dow Jones index sank 2.50 percent on Tuesday after several US companies posted weaker-than-expected quarterly earnings. Most European exchanges also ended with losses.

The Tokyo market was spooked by media reports that auto giant Toyota Motor and megabank Mitsubishi UFJ are likely to suffer sharp falls in earnings.

The Canadian central bank declared the US economy in recession as it announced a second unscheduled interest rate cut this month to stimulate domestic demand.