Asia stocks fall on Greece aid snags; Nikkei down 0.21%

Investing.com - Asian stocks were lower on Thursday after European Commission leaders cancelled a meeting with Greek officials on concerns they lacked assurance from Athens that the country's political leadership was fully behind pushing through austerity measures.

Greece needs creditor countries and multilateral lending agencies to sign off on a EUR130 billion bailout facility if the country wants to make a EUR14.5 billion bond payment due March 20.

Greece's parliament recently voted in favor of unpopular austerity measures such as pension reforms and public-sector layoffs, although concerns persisted on Thursday whether the country had the political will to turn the parliamentary vote into reality.

During Asian trading on Thursday, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was down 0.75%, Australia's S&P/ASX200 was down 1.84%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index was down 0.21%.

Australian shares were down due to a sell-off among mining companies on fears that a slower global economy will need less metals to operate, while financial shares plunged as well.

Greece served as Asia's chief steering current, however, as fears returned that the crisis could spread.

"There's a persistent concern that creditors may have to pardon parts of debt not only for Greece, but also for other South European nations," said Toshiaki Iwasaki, an analyst at Mito Securities, according to Bloomberg.

"Technical indicators show Japan’s stocks are being overbought, and we should see a sell-off as investors take profits."

In Hong Kong, the top decliners included CITIC Pacific, down 2.68%, Li & Fung, down 2.30%, and Sinopec, down 2.04%.

In Australia, the top decliners included Aquila Resources, down 6.41%, Goodman Fielder, down 5.88%, and White Energy, down 5.21%.

European stock futures indicated a lower opening.

France's CAC 40 futures pointed to a loss of 0.52%, while Germany ’s DAX 30 futures signaled a loss of 0.42 %. Meanwhile, in the U.K., the FTSE 100 futures indicated a decline of 0.30%.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 0.43% while the S&P 500 futures were down 0.53%.

Later Thursday, Japan will release the minutes of its latest monetary policy meeting, while the ECB is to release its monthly bulletin, which provides investors with a detailed analysis of current and future economic conditions.

In Canada, official data is to be released on foreign security purchases as well as on manufacturing sales, a leading indicator of economic health.

The U.S. is to publish government data on building permits and housing starts, which will shed light into the health of the housing sector as well as on construction demand.

The U.S. will also release reports on producer price inflation and unemployment claims.

Furthermore, the U.S. will unveil manufacturing data in the Philadelphia area, while Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is due to speak as well.