Tokyo tanks as Asian markets track Wall St down on recession fears

- Photo: AFP

HONG KONG: Tokyo led losses across Asia on Friday (Aug 2) due to a stronger yen and expectations for more Japanese rate hikes, while disappointing data sparked a plunge on Wall Street and fuelled fresh fears of a US recession.

The optimism that greeted Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell's indication on Wednesday that borrowing costs could be cut in September has given way to trepidation that the slowdown in the world's number one economy might be picking up too much speed.