Asian stock markets tumble amid Europe fears

Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock average shed 251.66 points, or 2.5 percent, to 9,782.02, with exporters falling sharply on a strong yen.

Other markets across the region fell sharply as well. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index was down 2.3 percent at 4,217.1 and Taiwan’s market shed 2.2 percent. Benchmarks in mainland China, Indonesia and Singapore also retreated.

Hong Kong and South Korean stock exchanges were closed for a public holiday. Trading in Thailand has been suspended due to political turmoil.

Investors fear debt problems in countries like Greece and Portugal will spill over to other countries in Europe. That could then trigger a cascade of losses for big banks and in turn halt economic recovery in the U.S. and elsewhere.

A stronger yen hammered exporters in Japan, with automakers and tech shares posting big declines. Honda Motor Co. lost 3.6 percent, and Nissan Motor Co. fell 3.9 percent. The euro sank to 109.47 yen at one point overnight to hit its lowest level since late 2001.

Japanese Finance Minister Naoto Kan told reporters Friday that he is closely monitoring currency markets and that excessive appreciation of the yen is undesirable, according to Kyodo news agency.

Thursday in New York, the Dow Jones industrial average plummeted 3.6 percent to 10,068.01 in its biggest point drop since February 2009. The S&P 500 fell 3.9 percent to 1,071.59, and the Nasdaq composite index plunged 4.1 percent to 2,204.01.

Oil prices resumed their swoon as concerns over the European economy had traders bailing out of energy commodities. Benchmark crude for July delivery was down 84 cents at $69.96 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

In currencies, the dollar rose to 90.06 yen from 89.06 yen late Thursday. The dollar had been trading near 92-yen levels earlier this week. The euro rose to $1.2558 from $1.2465.