Asian stocks fall on banking concerns

Asia-Pacific stocks fell on Thursday but largely pared losses as the trading day wore on as turmoil surrounding Credit Suisse added to banking concerns in the region. Shares in Credit Suisse fell to a second straight all-time low on Wednesday after its top investor rejected further aid. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng led losses in the region, shedding 1.73 percent, while the Hang Seng Tech index fell 1.57 percent on Thursday. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200, miners and the banking sector fell 1.52 percent. Investors will also weigh unemployment figures. Japan’s Topix fell 1.35 percent on Thursday morning after the country’s February trade data came in lower than expected. The Nikkei 225 fell 1.05 percent. Bucking the trend was South Korea, with the Kospi rising marginally and the Kosdaq also rising 0.53 percent. Overnight in the U.S., major indexes closed broadly lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.9 percent and the S&P 500 down 0.7 percent. The Nasdaq Composite added 0.05 percent, posting a small gain. The Swiss franc continued to fluctuate following developments surrounding Credit Suisse, and was last up 0.17 percent against the U.S. dollar after it announced it had borrowed about $54 billion from the Swiss National Bank.