Nikkei slides during mixed Asian session

Japanese stocks were the worst performing of the Asian markets today (October 14th), declining sharply as trading resumed after a national holiday in the country. 

The Nikkei 225 index extended its decline into a fifth consecutive session, catching up the losses experienced across the region yesterday.

Exporters topped the list of fallers in Tokyo, with companies such as Inpex Corp experiencing strong declines on the back of tumbling crude oil prices.

Fears over global economic growth have been responsible for much of the recent equities rout and member nations present at the International Monetary Fund's annual conference in Washington over the weekend spoke of the need for action to be taken to bolster the worldwide recovery.

The Nikkei ended the session down by 2.38 per cent at 14,936.51 points - its lowest level since August 8th. It also broke below the index's 200-day moving average of 15,122.11 points. 

Shares in the country have been hampered by a relative strengthening of the yen versus the dollar, which reduces repatriated earnings for domestic companies concerned with international sales.

Elsewhere, other Asian markets fared more positively, with investors citing recent weaknesses as ideal buying opportunities. As a result, some major indexes experienced a rebound despite another weak close on Wall Street.

In Australia, the ASX/200 recouped 1.1 per cent, boosted by a stronger iron-ore market. Prices increased by four per cent yesterday and the nation is one of the world's largest exporters of the metal.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.7 per cent as police took measures to clear roads and reopened a key route. Students have blocked these streets for more than two weeks as part of pro-democracy protests

These advances were led by utilities and communication stocks, with analysts noting the use of phones and the internet during the clashes has been positive for these stocks.