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Summary Asian stocks dived after a failure by Greece's political leaders to form a coalition government.
Japans Nikkei 225 index dropped 1.5 percent to 8,771.60 amid discouraging economic news. Core private-sector machinery orders fell 2.8 percent in March, the first drop in three months, Japans Cabinet Office said.Elsewhere, investors remained focused on the turmoil in Greece. Hong Kongs Hang Seng slid 2.8 percent to 19,346.54 and South Koreas Kospi fell 2.3 percent to 1,855.13. Australias S&P/ASX 200 lost 2.3 percent to 4,167.50 amid sliding commodities prices.Newly elected Greek leaders hotly divided over how to resolve the countrys economic crisis failed Tuesday to form a new government. That means new elections must be held in June.Some investors fear a win by parties that oppose unpopular austerity measures necessary for Greece to qualify for urgently needed bailout money. Without the money, the country would likely default on its debt and leave the euro common currency.The Greek crisis will continue to frustrate markets, keeping sentiment under pressure, analysts at Credit Agricole CIB in Hong Kong wrote in an email.Blue-chip shares across sectors throughout Asia registered sharp losses. South Korean electronics giant Samsung Electronics Co. shed 5.6 percent and Hyundai Motors Co. fell 3 percent. In Japan, Toyota Motor Corp. lost 2.5 percent. Nomura Holdings Inc. lost 1.8 percent.Shares of major Chinese shipping companies plummeted amid fears of weakness in Europe, a critical export market. Hong Kong-listed China Shipping Container Lines Co. plunged 7.5 percent. China COSCO Holdings Co. dropped 4.5 percent.Benchmark oil fell $1.23 to $92.75 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 80 cents Tuesday to finish at $93.98 per barrel in New York oil hasnt finished that low since Dec. 19.In currencies, the euro fell to $1.2717 from $1.2734 late Tuesday in New York. The dollar rose to 80.36 yen from 80.27 yen.
