Markets across the region plummeted into the red as dealers ignored a wave of interest rate cuts and billions of dollars of cash injections to sell their shares amid the worst global financial crisis since the Great Depression.

Investors took fright at news that the credit crisis has claimed its first Japanese financial institution with the bankruptcy of Yamato Life Insurance, pushing the Nikkei stock index down 9.6 percent by the close.

It was the Nikkei’s biggest loss in two decades, surpassing Wednesday’s plunge of 9.38 percent. The Nikkei has lost more than 24 percent over the past week.

Hong Kong saw 7.2 percent wiped off its value. The market there has fallen 16 percent in the past week and 47 percent since the start of the year.

Sydney was also battered, losing 8.3 percent, its biggest fall since the 1987 crash. Singapore lost 7.34 percent to its lowest level in more than four years as traders also took in data that showed the economy was in a technical recession. Seoul lost more than four percent and Shanghai was 3.5 percent off.

Taiwan was closed for a public holiday.

Manila also felt the pressure, diving more than eight percent in its worst fall since the 1997 Asian financial crisis.

The heavy losses led Bangkok to suspend trading for half and hour after the bourse there dived more than 10 percent. It closed the day down 9.6 percent down.

And Jakarta, which closed Wednesday after falling by the same amount, was suspended for a third straight day.

The markets were following slumps in Wall Street, where the Dow Jones plunged 7.33 percent overnight, closing below 9,000 points for the first time since 2003.

The sell-offs came as world finance chiefs prepared an emergency meeting in Washington to address the panic.

In Japan, the central bank tried to keep liquidity in money market by pumping 4.5 trillion yen (US$45.5 billion) into them, the most since the financial crisis started, while the stock exchange briefly halted some trading in futures and options.

Singapore eased monetary policy for the first time in more than four years, while the Reserve Bank of India ploughed 8.2 billion dollars into its market.

Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso warned the slump “has reached a point where it affects the real economy.”

The dollar hit a seven-month low of 97.91 yen at one point, putting extra pressure on exporters. The greenback stood at 98.72 in late Tokyo trade down from 99.50 in New York Thursday. The euro fell to 134.04 yen from 135.75.

And oil dipped below 80 dollars a barrel as traders feared a lack of demand due to a slowing world economy.

Brent North Sea crude for November delivery fell 4.78 dollars to 77.88 dollars after settling 1.70 dollars lower at 82.66 on Thursday in London.

New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in November, plunged 4.74 dollars to 81.85 dollars after dropping 2.36 dollars to 86.59 on Thursday at the New York Mercantile Exchange.

In other markets Kuala Lumpur was 3.6 percent off and New Zealand was 4.72 percent lower.

TOKYO: Japan’s Nikkei stock index plunged 9.62 percent, dealers said.

Investors were spooked by news that the credit crunch has claimed its first victim among Japanese financial institutions with the bankruptcy of Yamato Life Insurance.

The Nikkei dived 881.06 points to end at 8,276.43, the lowest level since May 2003, while the Topix index of all first section shares sank 64.25 points, or 7.1 percent, to 840.86.

Market watchers were not ruling out further losses for the Nikkei.

“We can’t rule out the possibility of it falling below 8,000,” Masayoshi Okamoto, a general manager at Jujiya Securities, said.

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