Asia stocks down for third day as Greece debt woes weigh

Investing.com - Asian stock markets were down for a third day on Wednesday, as growing concerns that Greece and its private bondholders will not meet the deadline to complete a debt swap prompted investors to shun riskier assets.

During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 0.8%, Australia’s ASX/200 Index tumbled 1.45%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index retreated 0.65%.

Markets remained jittery ahead of the March 8 deadline for bondholders to join the agreement under which they will exchange their existing Greek government bonds for new paper in a swap deal.

A failure to agree on the swap would put the country back on the brink of a messy sovereign debt default and could reignite fears about the collapse of the single currency.

In Japan, the Nikkei settled at a two-week low as investors continued to take profit amid growing concerns over a sharp pullback, following the Nikkei's 10.5% rally in February.

Exporters came under pressure, amid a downbeat outlook for export earnings. Consumer electronics giant Sony fell 2.4%, Panasonic shares declined 1.15%, while automakers Toyota and Mazda slumped 1.2% and 3.8% respectively.

Shares in the financial sector came under pressure. Investment banks Nomura Holdings and Daiwa Securities Group retreated 1.9% and 2.4% respectively, while Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group traded down 1%.

Elsewhere, shares in Hong Kong were dragged down by weakness in insurance giant China Life Insurance, which tumbled 6.4% after warning that  its 2011 profit may fall by up to 50% from a year earlier on lower investment yields and bigger impairment losses.

The news weighed on other shares in the sector, with Ping An Insurance Group down 3.1% and China Pacific Insurance falling 3.15%.

Shares in raw material producers came under pressure for a third day, after oil and metal prices dropped on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Oil giant CNOOC fell 2.65%, Jiangxi Copper Company dropped 2.7% and Zijin Mining Group shed 1.2%.

In Australia, shares came under pressure after official data showed that the nation’s economy grew by a less-than-expected 0.4% in the final three months of 2011, missing expectations for a 0.7% increase.

Miners led losses, with Newcrest Mining dropping 3.85%, while BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto saw shares decline 1.55% and 1.9% respectively.

Meanwhile, shares in surf-wear retailer Billabong continued its recent run of losses, tumbling 6.15%. The shares have been under pressure since the company rejected a takeover approach by buyout firm TPG in late February.

Looking ahead, the outlook for European stock markets was mixed ahead of a deadline for Greece to complete a debt swap deal on Thursday.

The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a modest gain of 0.1%, France’s CAC 40 futures dipped 0.1%, London’s FTSE 100 futures eased down 0.1%, while Germany's DAX futures pointed to a gain of 0.15% at the open.

Later in the day, Germany was to release official data on factory orders, while the U.S. was to publish a report on ADP non-farm payrolls, which leads government data by two days.

The U.S. was also to release revised data on non-farm productivity and labor costs, as well as a report on crude oil stockpiles.