2014.03.2005:47:32UTC+00Asian shares plummet to 6-week low

The Asian stocks dropped, with the regional benchmark is heading towards a six-week low, following the Federal Reserve implied it might escalate US interest rates in the middle of next year.

Newcrest Mining Ltd., Australia’s largest gold producer, tumbled 6.6% after bullion dived the most in three months as the Fed’s announcement tamed demand for haven assets. Myer Holdings Ltd. dropped 5.5% in Sydney as the retailer trimmed its forecast for gross profit margin. BYD Co., the electric-car maker supported by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., slipped 7.9% in Hong Kong after it postulated lower than anticipated 1st quarter profit.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slid 1.3% to 133,02 as of 12:16 p.m. in Tokyo, gearing for the lowest finish since February 6. Around three shares dipped for each that escalated on the gauge. Yesterday, the Fed said its key rate, almost zero at present, would be 1% at the end of 2015 and 2.25% a year later.

The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index of mainland stocks listed in Hong Kong decreased 0.7%, carrying losses from a December 2 high, which was close to 20% threshold that some investors considered a bear market. The city’s benchmark Hang Seng Index plunged 0.8%. The Shanghai Composite Index swerved between gains and losses.

Japan’s Topix index fell 0.6% following it rose 0.6%. South Korea’s Kospi index went down 0.8%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index sank 0.9%. New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index erased 0.2%. Singapore’s Straits Times Index missed 0.2%. And Taiwan’s Taiex index wiped out 1%.

The MSCI Asia Pacific missed 4.7% this year through yesterday, when shares on the gauge was at 12.6 times estimated earnings, as compared to a multiple of 15.8 for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index and 

14.3 for the Stoxx Europe 600 Index.