HONG KONG, Apr 28 (AFP): Growing concerns about a possible swine flu pandemic continued to haunt Asian stock markets today, with airline and travel firms again at the sharp end of the sell-offs.

TOKYO: Down 2.67 per cent. The Nikkei-225 fell 232.57 points to 8,493.77.

HONG KONG: Down 1.92 per cent. The Hang Seng Index closed down 285.31 points at 14,555.11.

SYDNEY: Down 0.62 per cent. The S&P/ASX 200 dropped 23.2 points to 3,708.4.

SHANGHAI: Down 0.16 per cent. The Shanghai Composite Index, which covers A and B shares, was down 3.91 points at 2,401.44.

TAIPEI: Down 1.90 per cent. The weighted index fell 108.32 points at 5,596.73.

SEOUL: Down 2.95 per cent. The KOSPI ended down 39.59 points at 1,300.24, the lowest since April 8.

SINGAPORE: Down 0.56 per cent. The blue-chip Straits Times Index closed 10.20 points lower at 1,808.41.