Asian Stocks Fall to 3-Year Low as Credit-Market Crisis Widens (Chua Kong Ho and Nick Baker)

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Oct. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks fell, dragging the region's benchmark index to its lowest level in more than three years, as deteriorating credit markets forced new bailouts of Hypo Real Estate Holding AG and Fortis.

Japan's Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. and Australia's Macquarie Group Ltd. tumbled more than 9 percent after Germany agreed on a $68 billion package for Hypo and BNP Paribas SA said it will take control of Fortis in Belgium and Luxembourg. Sumitomo Metal Mining Co. lost 7.1 percent after copper and gold prices sank amid concern a $700 billion U.S. bank bailout won't prevent a slowdown in global economic growth.

``It will probably be a rough week for global investors as they realize the credit crisis has a long way to play out,'' said Frederic Dickson, who helps oversee $25 billion as chief market strategist at D.A. Davidson & Co. in Lake Oswego, Oregon. ``U.S. action was an absolutely essential first step, and global intervention is needed.''

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 4.5 percent to 99.98 as of 7:26 p.m. in Tokyo, its lowest close since July 20, 2005. All 10 industry groups fell, with financial stocks contributing 35 percent of the index's decline.