Asian shares were mostly lower Wednesday, after the steepest drop in oil prices in more than three years put investors in a selling mood on Wall Street.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 inched down 0.1 per cent to 21,779.22 in early trading, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 1.3 per cent to 5,759.90. South Korea's Kospi edged down 0.4 per cent at 2,062.34.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.4 per cent to 25,684.65, while the Shanghai Composite was down 0.4 per cent at 2,644.64. Shares were also lower in Taiwan, reports AP.
The S&P 500 index fell 4.04 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 2,722.18. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 100.69 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 25,286.49. The Nasdaq composite was little changed at 7,200.87.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies gave up 3.99 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 1,514.80.
Benchmark US crude oil dipped 40 cents to $55.29. It plunged 7.1 per cent to $55.69 a barrel Tuesday. Brent crude, used to price international oils, dropped 30 per cent to $65.17 a barrel.
Oil has now fallen for 12 straight days, driven by worries over rising oil production around the world and weakening demand from developing countries, with expectations for increased supply from the US and OPEC.
The dollar slipped to 113.88 yen from 114.01 yen late Tuesday in Asia. The euro strengthened to $1.1299 from $1.1252.
