GLOBAL MARKETS-Nikkei leads Asian stocks down; yen buoyant

                                
 * Asian stocks fall, but China, Indonesia limit losses
                                
 * Japan's Nikkei closes below 9,000 to 15-month low
                                
 * Euro hits six-week low vs dlr, nine-year trough vs yen
                                
 * Gold at one-week low; oil at 7-week trough
                                
 By Kevin Yao
                                
 SINGAPORE, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Asian stocks fell on Tuesday,
with Japan's Nikkei index closing below a key support level as
investors fretted about an anaemic global recovery, while the
Japanese yen hit a nine-year high against the euro.
                                
 Recent data, particularly those from the United States and
Europe, have showed signs of fatigue of the global economy
despite the extension of accommodative policy measures in most
countries, prompting investors to shun riskier assets.
                                
 Major European shares <.FTEU3> opened nearly a percent
lower, and futures for the S&P 500 <SPc1> were down 0.4 percent
at 0710 GMT, pointing to a lower start for U.S. trade as well.
                                
 Japan's Nikkei average <.N225> fell 1.3 percent, dipping
below the closely watched 9,000 mark for the first time in 15
months, pressured by selling from hedge funds and foreigners.
                                
 Investors have in recent weeks dumped Japanese stocks amid
worries the yen's unfettered appreciation could further
undermine the country's tepid economic recovery.
                                
 The Nikkei index has shed nearly 15 percent so far this
year, compared with a 2.6 percent fall in the MSCI Asia
ex-Japan index.
                                
 The 9,000-9,100 range had been strong technical support for
the benchmark Nikkei since last year.
                                
 Germany confirmed its economy grew 2.2 percent in the
second quarter from the previous three months -- the fastest
rate since reunification.
                                
 Investors awaited data on the euro zone June industrial
orders and U.S. existing home sales, which are expected to show
a drop of around 12 percent in July, underlining the weakness
of the housing market. [ID:nN23201386]
                                
  "If the U.S. housing market is not good now, that means
the U.S. economy will not be good in coming 2-3 quarters," said
K.C. Law, chief economist and strategist at Bank of
Communications in Hong Kong.
                                
  The MSCI index of Asia Pacific stocks outside Japan
<.MIAPJ0000PUS> fell 0.9 percent, but the loss was limited by
rising Chinese stocks, lifted by strong corporate earnings, and
resilience in southeast Asia.
                                
 Indonesian stocks <.JKSE> hit a fresh record high as
investors bet on robust growth in Southeast Asia's largest
economy.
                                
 Overnight, both the Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> and
the Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> finished lower despite
flurry of corporate takeover activity, usually a sign of
investors optimism.
                                
 YEN BUOYANT
                                
 The euro sank to a nine-year low against the yen as the
loss of key chart support led speculators to short the currency
in the hope of forcing stop-loss sales against both the yen and
the dollar.
                                
 The euro fell as low as 107.21 yen <EURJPY=R>, its lowest
since November 2001. It later edged back to 107.35 yen, down
0.4 percent on the day.
                                
 Against the dollar, the euro hit a six-week low of $1.2620.
                                
 Bears were targeting $1.2605, the 50 percent retracement of
the euro's rise from a four-year low of $1.1876 in June to its
August peak of $1.3334. A break here would open the way to at
least $1.2522 and then $1.2479, daily lows from July.
                                
 The August euro zone purchasing managers index for
manufacturing, which drove a large part of the economy's return
to growth in the third quarter of last year, saw its pace of
growth slowing, data showed on Monday. [ID:nLDE67M10B]
                                
 With the yen hovering near a 15-year high against the
dollar <JPY=>, investors were cautious about possible steps by
Japanese authorities to temper the yen's rise, but direct
yen-selling intervention appears to be out of the radar screen
for now.
                                
 Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan and Bank of Japan
Governor Masaaki Shirakawa discussed the yen and had agreed to
work closely in a phone conversation on Monday, but Kan did not
ask the central bank to ease monetary policy further, and the
two did not touch on currency intervention either.
[ID:nTOE67M02F]      Spot gold <XAU=> fell more than $2 to
$1,221 an ounce after hitting a one-week low of $1,219.30, as
falling equities prompted investors to sell bullion to cover
losses, while a firmer dollar also put pressure.
                                
  Crude oil <CLc1> lost nearly a dollar at $72.20 a barrel,
a seven-week low, as the dollar rose and the lacklustre U.S.
driving season approached its end without triggering a seasonal
stockpile drop.
 (Additional reporting by Aiko Hayashi in TOKYO; Editing by
Mathew Veedon)