Summary The government said the producer price index fell 2.3 percent in March.
HONG KONG (AFP) - Asia s markets fell on Friday following hefty plunges on Wall Street as US technology stocks suffered another sell-off, while China released data showing inflation picked up in March but was still below forecasts.
Tokyo led the decline, plunging 2.38 percent, or 340.07 points, to 13,960.05 -- its lowest close in six months, while Seoul lost 0.56 percent, or 11.17 points, to 1,997.44 and Sydney shed 0.95 percent, or 52.15 points, to 5,428.6.
Shanghai slid 0.18 percent, or 3.76 points, to 2,130.54 and Hong Kong fell 0.79 percent, or 183.32 points, to 23,003.64 on worries over the world s second biggest economy.
Asian markets struggled after the Nasdaq suffered another slump on Thursday on lingering fears that high-flying technology stocks like Facebook and Netflix may be overvalued.
The tech-weighted index plunged 3.10 percent, the biggest single-day percentage point drop since November 2011. The loss wiped out a two-day rally that picked up on Wednesday when the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve policy meeting suggested no support for an early rise in interest rates.
But Thursday s rout spread to other stocks, with New York s two other main indexes also hit. The Dow shed 1.62 percent and the S&P 500 was down 2.09 percent.
Michael James, managing director of equity trading at Wedbush Securities, said investors were reducing equity exposure across the board and added: "Lower prices were bringing out more sellers."
He warned: "The market is on very shaky legs."
- China inflation on rise -
In China the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Friday inflation jumped to 2.4 percent last month, from 2.0 percent in February but short of the 2.5 percent estimated by economists.
While the figure will soothe fears of possible deflation in the worlds number two economies it is still well below the government s annual target of 3.5 percent.
The government also said the producer price index fell 2.3 percent in March, accelerating from February s 2.0 percent slip.
"The figures indicated that the domestic economy continued to slow down, so the market will likely keep consolidating," Zheshang Securities analyst Zhang Yanbing told AFP.
On forex markets, the greenback changed hands at 101.80 yen in Asian afternoon trade, compared with 101.44 yen in New York. The euro rose to 141.46 yen from 140.88 yen and to $1.3895 from $1.3888.
Oil prices fell. New York s main contract West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for May delivery eased 23 cents to $103.17 a barrel in afternoon trade while Brent North Sea crude dipped 19 cents to $107.27 for its May contract.
Gold fetched $1,320.08 an ounce at 1045 GMT, from $1,322.70 late Thursday.
In other markets:
-- Kuala Lumpur fell 6.86 points or 0.37 percent to close at 1,852.66.
Felda Global Ventures shed 1.5 percent to 4.59 ringgit while Dialog Group lost 2.7 percent to 3.59. British American Tobacco was up 0.9 percent to 62.00 ringgit.
-- Singapore eased 0.17 percent, or 5.36 points, to close at 3,198.22.
Real estate developer Capitaland was down 1.02 percent at Sg$2.92 while vehicle distributor Jardine Cycle & Carriage rose 2.36 percent to Sg$46.44.
-- Jakarta closed higher 1.07 percent, or 50.85 points, at 4,816.58.
Palm oil producer Astra Agro Lestari rose 5.32 percent to 27,700 rupiah, while cigarette maker Gudang Garam lost 0.41 to 49,000 rupiah.
-- Bangkok lost 0.03 percent or 0.40 points to 1,389.16.
Electricity Generating Public Co. fell 1.15 percent to 129.50 baht, while telecoms company True Corp. added 1.48 percent to 6.85 baht.
-- Taipei fell 0.45 percent, or 40.05 points, to 8,908.05.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. rose 0.42 percent to Tw$120.0 while Acer fell 1.56 percent to Tw$18.9.
-- Wellington shed 0.47 percent, or 24.06 points, to 5,091.43.
Online auction house Trade Me was down 2.01 percent at NZ$3.90 and Air New Zealand was off 0.96 percent at NZ$2.06.
-- Manila slipped 0.63 percent, or 41.93 points, to 6,596.96.
Ayala Land shed 2.8 percent to 29.55 pesos while Philippine Long Distance Telephone dropped 0.36 percent to 2,744 pesos.
-- Mumbai dipped 0.38 percent, or 86.37 points, to 22,628.96.
