Hong Kong markets fell along with most Asian indexes as Foxconn International led a tech stock slump and HSBC led finance stocks lower yet again on fears originating out of the U.S.

Bloomberg quoted Nisu Harajchi from N1 Asset Management as saying "I'd want to stay away from the entire equity market ... if you look at the U.S. economy, housing market, and these newly created problems, which is the credit crisis, this is a big thing, taking the entire financial industry down.''

InBev will indeed acquire U.S. alcoholic beverage maker Anheuser-Busch for $52 billion after a month of court battles and what was appearing to be the start of a hostile takeover. This puts the 156 year-old American icon under Belgian control for the first time ever.

Below is a foreign market review for this morning:

European markets:

• The Dow Jones Euro Stoxx 50 Pr: at 3,227.57, up 39.79 (1.24%)
• The FTSE 100 Index: at 5,360.70, up 99.10 (1.88%)
• The DAX 30: at 6,231.66, up 78.36 (1.27%)
• The S&P/MIB Index: at 27,893.00, up 217.00 (0.78%)

Asia/Pacific markets:

• Nikkei 225 Average: closed at 13,010.16, down 29.53 (-0.23)
  
• The S&P/ASX 200 Index: closed at 4,921.00, down 58.90 (-1.18%)
  
• Hang Seng Index: closed at 22,014.26, down 170.09 (-0.77%)

Yesterday I posted Chasing Value: Harley-Davidson (HOG) looking on down the road and actually bought a few shares. Late in the day I received a comment from one of our frequent readers whose opinions I have grown to respect, although he can be a little harsh at times. This reader raised some interesting points I thought worth some consideration. He wrote:

• "I don't like the stock. I see it as a luxury item for aging Baby Boomers. The ones who always wanted one, (or who) already own one. The younger generations aren't interested. I also think you're making a classic mistake when you speculate by saying "if it returns to its former level within the next few years."

He is correct that there is no assurance a stock will return to past glory. It is entirely possible that a company may fade away, just like Levi Strauss did when competitors stormed its castle from all sides with cheaper products, fancier products, variations on a theme and jeans made by other strong brands that extended their product lines into Levi's historic stronghold.

Similar things are happening now to Harley-Davidson (NYSE: HOG) as Honda Motors, Yamaha, Kowasaki and Suzuki take on "style and look" of the classic American "HOG" ride. They do it cheaper, with less effort and even borrow American icons like eagles and flags to promote their machines. They also offer a smoother ride in many cases, as Harley clings to the past and continues producing motorcycles with what it calls "edgy" (read "rough") rides. It is also true that younger motorcycle enthusiasts do not appreciate the Harley mystique in the same way as Baby Boomers have.

Commentators note that U.S. investors have poured a lot of money into foreign stock markets in recent few years.

As it happens, the flow hasn't been just one way.

In fact, based on cumulative 12-month totals derived from monthly Treasury Department data, foreigners appear to have invested a record amount in U.S. corporate stocks during the period ending in July, the latest month available.

When was the last record set? In January 2001, just as the dot-com bubble was bursting and the bottom was falling out of U.S. share prices.

Over the past decade, foreigner investors' buying and selling behavior has proved to be a reasonably good long-term timing signal -- in contrarian terms, that is.

In 2002, for instance, when the S&P 500 index began a major upside run, foreigners kept their investment to a minimum for nearly three years. They eventually rejoined the bullish party in late 2005.

A cynic might wonder: now that they have really started piling in, can much lower prices be far behind?

Michael Panzner is a 25-year veteran of the global stock, bond, and currency markets and the author of Financial Armageddon: Protecting Your Future from Four Impending Catastrophes and The New Laws of the Stock Market Jungle.