Asian stock markets close midweek in red

By Gokhan Ergocun

ISTANBUL (AA) – Major Asian stock markets closed Wednesday with decreases amid increasing tensions in the Russia-Ukraine war.

Russia announced on Wednesday a partial military mobilization, condemned "nuclear blackmail" and said his country also "has various means of destruction."

Meanwhile, the Asian Development Bank lowered its GDP forecasts for developing Asia to 4.3% this year, from a 5.2% forecast in its April report.

The bank dropped the forecast due to the Russia-Ukraine war, aggressive monetary tightening in advanced economies, and pandemic lockdowns in China.

The Asia Dow, which includes blue-chip companies in the region, dropped 1.8% or 54.91 points to 2,994.59.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 stock exchange decreased 1.26%, or 375.29 points, to 27,313.13.

The Hang Seng, the benchmark for blue-chip stocks trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange, lost 1.79% or 336.8 points to 18,444.62.

China's Shanghai Stock Exchange fell 0.17%, or 5.23 points, to close at 3,117.18.

The Indian Sensex benchmark went down 0.44%, or 262.96 points, to end the day at 59,456.78 points, while the Singapore index dropped 0.16%, or 5.15 points, to close at 3,261.79.