Tokyo — Asian shares were mostly lower Wednesday, as pessimism prevailed about higher interest rates ahead and Wall Street continued a late-summer slump, the Associated Press reported.
Shares fell in Tokyo, Sydney, South Korea and Hong Kong, but were little changed in Shanghai. Oil prices fell, while the Japanese yen continued to decline against the U.S. dollar to about 144 yen.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 shed 0.7% to finish at 27,430.30. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dropped 1.4% to 6,729.30. South Korea’s Kospi slid 1.4% to 2,376.46. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dipped 1.0% to 19,003.55, while the Shanghai Composite was little changed, inching up less than 0.1% at 3,245.22.
In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude fell $1.42 to $85.46 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, fell $1.30 to $91.53 a barrel.
In currency trading, the U.S. dollar rose to 144.01 Japanese yen from 142.76 yen. The euro was little changed at 99 cents.
Source: Saudi Press Agency