SINGAPORE — Stocks in Asia-Pacific were mixed in Wednesday trade, with some markets in the region closed for holidays.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 led losses among the region’s major markets as it closed 1.9% lower at 6,931.70.
Mainland Chinese stocks were mixed, with the Shanghai composite down 0.68% while the Shenzhen component advanced 0.151%.
The Nikkei 225 in Japan fell 1.28% to end the trading day at 28,044.45 while the Topix index slipped 0.66% to close at 1,895.24.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.33%.
In corporate developments, shares of Singapore Airlines were down 2.67% in Wednesday afternoon trade, with the firm set to announce its full-year results later in the day.
Markets in Hong Kong and South Korea are closed on Wednesday for holidays.
Oil prices slip nearly 1%
Oil prices slipped in the afternoon of Asia trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures down 0.79% to $68.17 per barrel. U.S. crude futures shed 0.86% to $64.93 per barrel.
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 89.717 following a recent slip from above 90.
The Japanese yen traded at 108.93 per dollar, having strengthened yesterday from above 109 against the greenback. The Australian dollar traded at $0.7789, higher than levels around $0.774 seen earlier this week.
Source: CNBC