AFP/Tokyo

Currency dealers look at screens in a dealing room of a bank in Seoul yesterday. Seoul shares closed at their lowest level in more than 15 months, as persistent volatility in the local forex market and caution on the eurozone debt crisis kept investors at bay
Asian markets tumbled yesterday and the euro was further pressured by nagging uncertainty over the eurozone as leaders of the debt-troubled region struggle to find a plan to solve the crisis.
The week got off to a poor start as investors were left unimpressed by a commitment at the weekend from G20 finance chiefs that they would take strong, co-ordinated action to avoid another global financial crisis.
And they are even more nervous as Europe heads into a crunch week that will be key to the future of the region.
Tokyo fell 2.17%, or 186.13 points, to 8,374.13, Seoul shed 2.64%, or 44.73 points, to 1,652.71 and Sydney ended 1.01%, or 39.3 points, off at 3,863.9.
In the afternoon Hong Kong fell 2.97% and Shanghai lost 1.54%.
Bangkok fell more than 8% and Manila slumped 4.24%, or 164.74 points, to 3,721.22, its lowest close since September 2010.
The losses extended those from last week, when some global indexes were sent tumbling to multi-year lows because of the ongoing European crisis as well as concerns over US economic growth.
The G20 meeting in Washington issued an emergency statement saying: “We... are committed to a strong and coordinated international response to address the renewed challenges facing the global economy.
“We are taking strong actions to maintain financial stability, restore confidence and support growth.”
However, despite moves to shore up confidence in Greece, many fear the country will inevitably default on its loans, which could in turn spread to other economies and lead to another financial downturn.
Mitul Kotecha, a strategist at Credit Agricole, said: “A pledge by G20 officials to help combat the crisis gave some support to markets but given that there were no details on how this would be done, it will not do much to alleviate market stress without some concrete action.”
Teppei Ino, an analyst at the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, said the group “came short of mapping out any measures with immediate effects so have failed to stop the market’s selling of risky assets”.
A senior dealer at a major Japanese trust bank told Dow Jones Newswires: “Uncertainty will likely persist.”
The sell-off comes as the eurozone faces a challenging week with European and IMF experts due to resume a fiscal audit that will decide if Athens can access the latest tranche of rescue funds to escape default.
In other markets, Taipei closed 2.40%, or 169.10 points, lower at 6,977.12 and Wellington closed down 0.83%, or 27.34 points, at 3,255.37.