Tokyo stocks in July felt the brunt of the shock waves that hit the New York market and the Nikkei average fell below 10,000, a level long considered solid.
Issues especially hard-hit were internationally popular firms Toyota Motor Corp. and Hitachi Ltd. as they were unloaded by U.S. mutual funds.
It is estimated that total cancellations during the two-week plunge came to roughly $40 billion, far exceeding the $29.5 billion that flowed out of the funds after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. It is also believed that some $1 billion, or 120 billion yen, of Japanese shares were converted into cash during this time.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.