SINGAPORE — Shares in Asia-Pacific were largely lower in Wednesday trade as concerns over the world's recovery from the pandemic weighed on investor sentiment.
The Nikkei 225 in Japan slipped 1.1% in morning trade while the Topix index declined 1.49% Over in South Korea, the Kospi slid 0.11%.
Mainland Chinese stocks also edged lower, with the Shanghai composite down 0.5% while the Shenzhen component shed 0.308%. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong dipped 0.49%.
Shares in Australia bucked the overall trend regionally as the S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.55%.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan traded 0.43% lower.
Many regions globally are seeing an increase in new Covid-19 cases as highly contagious variants continue to spread, the World Health Organization said earlier this week. In Europe, authorities continue to struggle with the virus as the region battles a third Covid wave.
In corporate developments, Chinese internet behemoth Tencent is set to announce its fourth quarter and annual results on Wednesday. Shares of Tencent in Hong Kong were up more than 1% in Wednesday morning trade.
In Taiwan, shares of chipmaking powerhouse Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company declined more than 2% in Wednesday morning trade. That came after Intel announced it will spend $20 billion to build two new chip factories in Arizona.
Meanwhile, Chinese streaming company Bilibili announced Tuesday that it will raise 20.2 billion Hong Kong dollars (about $2.6 billion) in its upcoming Hong Kong secondary listing after pricing its shares at 808 Hong Kong dollars each. Shares of Bilibili are expected to begin trading in Hong Kong on Monday.
Overnight stateside, the S&P 500 declined 0.76% to close at 3,910.52 while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 308.05 points to finish its trading day at 32,423.15. The Nasdaq Composite closed 1.12% lower at 13,227.70.
Currencies and oil
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 92.383 following a rise from levels below 91.8 earlier in the week.
The Japanese yen traded at 108.54 per dollar, as compared to levels around 108.9 against the greenback seen earlier this week. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.761 after declining yesterday from above $0.768.
Oil prices were mixed in the morning of Asia trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures up 0.13% to $60.87 per barrel. U.S. crude futures sat below the flatline as they traded at $57.75 per barrel.
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March 24, 2021 at 06:47AM
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Asia-Pacific stocks decline as pandemic recovery doubts weigh on sentiment - CNBC
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