Singapore - Singapore shares dropped sharply Thursday, cooling off from the euphoria over Barack Obama's election as US president the day before as investors expected a recession to hit.

The 30-share index BSE Sensex fell into the negative terrain on account of heavy selling activity in metal and blue-chip stocks.

Oil & gas, auto and IT stocks have edged up a bit from their earlier lows. Metal stocks continue to trade weak, while realty and FMCG sectors too have bounced back from their lower levels.

BSE Midcap and Smallcap index lost 1.42% and 1.96% respectively.

Today, the Indian stock market belled the day after losing 364.98 points at 9,755.03.

Tokyo - Asian stocks took a big dive Thursday, reacting to a sharp fall overnight on Wall Street and wiping away gains from earlier in the week.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average plunged 6.53 per cent to 8,899.14 while the broader Topix index of all first-section issues also lost 5.96 per cent to close at 909.3.

The plunge came on the heels of a Wall Street decline brought on by a report showing rapidly rising job losses.

The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 5.05 per cent to 9,139.27. The broader Standard and Poor's 500 Index was down 5.27 per cent to 952.77, and the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index fell 5.53 per cent to 1,681.64.

Hong Kong - Hong Kong shares plunged more than 7 per cent Thursday as delight over the US presidential election result turned to gloom over signs of a deepening global recession.

The blue-chip Hang Seng Index lost 1,050.12 points, or 7.08 per cent, to close at 13,790.04. Turnover was 48.25 billion Hong Kong dollars (6.22 billion US dollars).

The losses came 24 hours after the index surged by more than 3 per cent Wednesday afternoon on news of Barack Obama's win.

Seoul - Shares crashed Thursday on the Seoul stock exchange a

Indian equities extended its losses on poor economic fears in the global front.

The 30-share index BSE Sensex belled the day below 10,000 at 9,755.03 after falling 364.98 points. Realty, metal, oil & gas and baking stocks led the declining charts.

Asian stocks tumbled after News Corp, Isuzu Motors and Cathay Pacific Airways slashed their profit viewpoint, adding to evidence the worldwide economy is headed toward depression.

BSE Midcap and Smallcap index fell 3.16% and 1.95% respectively.