Japanese quake hits stocks, oil

The quake, which struck towards the end of the Asian trading session, prompted an immediate bout of selling in stock markets, with insurers hit badly, and a kneejerk drop in the yen. However, the Japanese currency recovered somewhat, thanks to its status as a safe haven for international traders.With tsunami alerts in place all round the Pacific Rim, from Australia all the way up to the west coast of the US, investors are on edge over the potential fallout. Japanese stocks, though, were hit hard and the benchmark Nikkei 225 index closed down 1.7 percent at 10,254.43.Losses were posted all round Asia and in Europe. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was down 0.3 percent at 5,826 while Frances CAC-40 fell 0.6 percent to 3,941. Germanys DAX was 1 percent lower at 6,991.The main impact has been to send oil prices to their highest levels for around two and a half years. By mid afternoon London time, the benchmark oil contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange was down $2.43 at $100.27 a barrel, while Brent crude in London fell $1.60 to $113.83.Elsewhere in Asia, South Koreas Kospi fell 1.3 percent to 1,955.54 and Australias S&P/ASX 200 was down 1.2 percent at 4,644.80. Hong Kongs Hang Seng index shed 1.6 percent to 23,249.78.Mainland Chinese shares fell too. The Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.8 percent to 2,933.80, while the Shenzhen Composite Index of Chinas smaller, second exchange lost 0.2 percent to 1,299.69.