SINGAPORE — Asia-Pacific shares fell at the open on Wednesday despite Wall Street recovering most of its losses by the close.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.77% and the Topix index slipped 0.72%.
In South Korea, the Kospi declined 0.52% and the Kosdaq shed 0.28%.
The S&P/ASX 200 in Australia lost 0.35%.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was 0.16% lower.
U.S. stock indexes initially fell sharply on Tuesday stateside before rallying in the afternoon. The Nasdaq Composite ended the session 1.75% higher at 11,322.24, while the S&P 500 was up 0.16% at 3,831.39,
The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 129.44 points, or 0.4%.
In central bank news, Bank Negara Malaysia is expected to release its monetary policy statement today. Analysts polled by Reuters expect the bank to raise rates by 25 basis points.
Currencies and oil
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was last at 106.495, jumping from below 105.3 earlier this week.
The Japanese yen traded at 135.52 per dollar, strengthening from more than 136 against the greenback on Tuesday. The Australian dollar weakened to $0.6792 against the stronger U.S. dollar.
“The deteriorating global economy is the main weight on AUD,” Kristina Clifton, an economist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia wrote in a note Wednesday.
In Asia’s morning trade, West Texas Intermediate crude was up 2.11% at $101.60. Brent crude rose 2.33% to $105.16 per barrel.
The U.S. oil benchmark plunged as much as 10%, breaking the $100 level on Tuesday stateside before settling 8.24% lower at $99.50 on the back of recession fears.
International benchmark Brent crude settled 9.45%, or $10.73, lower at $102.77 per barrel.
