Demand for safety forced the yield on Japanese government debt below zero on Tuesday for the first time. Stocks tumbled in Tokyo and elsewhere in Asia as stability concerns sent investors stampeding to only the safest of safe-haven assets.
As fear overwhelmed greed, yields on longer-term Japanese bonds went into negative territory, the yen surged to a 15-month peak and gold reached its most precious point since June. Uncertainty in Europe's eurozone helped to fuel the unease.
Finance Minister Taro Aso characterized recent movements as "rough," something of an understatement as the Nikkei 225 average nosedived 5.4 percent to close at 16,085.44.