Asian stocks fall on China growth fears

Asian markets snapped gains made over the past week as renewed fears of a slowdown in China's economy weighed on investors.

Mining giant BHP Billiton sparked a sell-off in Western markets yesterday after it revealed it had seen signs of flattening demand in China, particularly for iron ore. The comments caused resource stocks to dip, dragging the FTSE 100 into the red, while overnight there was more pain, with property shares in the region hit by growth concerns. The MSCI Asia Pacific index slipped 0.4% while the Topix shed 1.1% to 858.78 points, its first drop in six days, with energy and commodities stocks leading the losses. BHP Billiton's Australian listing was down 1.78% to AU$34.7 per share and Mi...