Asian stock markets declined Thursday after US tech stocks fell and China reported stronger manufacturing as investors looked ahead to a key OPEC meeting.
The Shanghai Composite Index shed 0.2 per cent to 3,330.04 and Tokyo's Nikkei 225 retreated 0.1 per cent to 22,570.42. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 1 per cent to 29,332.42.
Seoul's Kospi lost 0.6 per cent to 2,497.35. Sydney's S&P-ASX 200 declined 0.7 per cent to 5,965.90. Benchmarks in Taiwan, Singapore and Jakarta also retreated, while New Zealand and Malaysia gained.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index lost just under 1 point to 2,626.07 and the Dow Jones industrial average gained 0.4 per cent to 23,940.68. The Nasdaq lost 1.3 per cent to 6,824.39, reports AP.
Benchmark US crude rose 6 cents to $57.36 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 69 cents on Wednesday to $57.30.
Brent crude, used to price international oils, gained 12 cents to $62.65 in London. It lost 71 cents the previous session to $62.53.
The dollar strengthened to 111.98 yen from 111.90 yen. The euro gained to $1.1870 from $1.1847.
