MW: Nikkei drops below 11,000 for first time in over 3 years
By V. Phani Kumar
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Asian markets fell sharply Friday after a sell-off on Wall Street overnight, with heavy losses in exporters and machinery stocks sending Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 Average below the 11,000-point level for the first time in more than three years. The Nikkei was recently down 1.7% at 10,968.73 and the broader Topix index fell 2.2% to 1,052.95. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index dropped 2.2% to 4,655 and New Zealand's NZX 50 index shed 2.8% to 3,142.36. South Korean and Chinese markets were closed for a holiday.
