ASIAN stocks fell to their lowest in months Thursday — and European stocks followed in early trade — battered by persistent jitters over U.S. housing loan problems and their possible damage to global fi nancial markets.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index closed down nearly 2 percent on the Tokyo Stock Exchange after falling below the key 16,000-point mark the fi rst time since November. South Korea’s main benchmark fell 6.9 percent to its lowest fi nish since May, and Hong Kong’s blue chip Hang Seng Index was down 3.9 percent late afternoon.

Meanwhile, European stock indices dropped in early trade there, with Britain’s FTSE, France’s CAC-40 and Germany’s DAX all down around 2 percent.

Repercussions in Asian markets were bigger compared to the loss of 1.3 percent overnight in the United States — where the loan problems erupted — with at least three Asian markets losing more than 6 percent on the day. (SD-Agencies)