Sydney - Australian stocks slumped in early trading Thursday following heavy falls on Wall Street prompted by another rise in the oil price.

Manila - Philippine shares dropped 2.01 per cent on Thursday as investors dumped stocks on concerns that soaring oil prices would trigger inflationary pressures.

The BSE Sensex, on Wednesday (June 2), bounced back to 13,000 due to strong buying activity see

Tokyo - Tokyo stock

New York - Wall Street stock indices suffered major losses as oil futures hit a new record during Wednesday trading. 

Oil contracts for delivery next month peaked at 143.91 dollars per barrel before closing at 143.74 dollars per barrel. 

"As long as oil is going higher every day, it's difficult to say that we will hit a bottom," Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Harris Private Bank in Chicago, told the Bloomberg financial news agency. 

Seoul - Shares plunged more than two per cent Wednesday on the Seoul stock exchange as concerns over climbing oil prices and their impact on the world economy continue to besiege the market.