Tokyo shuts early after frenzied sell-off

Japanese stocks plunged for a second day today, bringing its two-day loss to nearly 6% amid investor jitters about a widening criminal investigation of internet start-up Livedoor Co.

The sell-off was so heavy that the Tokyo Stock Exchange pre-emptively closed trading 20 minutes early so as to avoid overwhelming its computerised trading system – the first time the bourse has shut down early for capacity reasons.