Australia: Shares post biggest drop in three weeks

[SYDNEY] Australian shares fell the most in over three weeks slipping 2.4 per cent on Thursday as data from China aggravated fears of deflation in the world's second biggest economy.

In a complete turnaround from Wednesday, the S&P/ASX 200 index shed 125.13 points to 5,095, posting its biggest percentage drop since Aug 24. Banks and miners fared the worst. The benchmark rose 2.1 per cent in the previous session.

Despite Thursday's fall the index is still up about 1 per cent for the week so far compared with a 4.2 per cent drop the previous week, which was its biggest since June.

New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index barely changed to finish the session at 5,670.99 points.

REUTERS