Stocks drop in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Seoul
Asian markets slipped in early trading Wednesday, after stocks fell on Wall Street as oil prices continued to drop following Monday’s wild ride to record low prices.
Japan’s Nikkei JP:NIK fell 1.2% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index HK:HSI slid 0.7%. The Shanghai Composite CN:SHCOMP edged down 0.3% while the smaller-cap Shenzhen Composite CN:399106 dipped 0.2%. South Korea’s Kospi KR:180721 sank 0.9%, while benchmark indexes in Taiwan TW:Y9999 , Singapore SG:STI and Indonesia ID:JAKIDX were mixed. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 AU:XJO fell 0.6%.
While May West Texas Intermediate oil US:CLK20 ended trading down as its contract expired, while the June WTI contract US:CLM20 was last up slightly.
On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average US:DJIA fell 631.56 points, or 2.7%, to end at 23,018, the S&P 500 index US:SPX lost 86.60 points, or 3.1%, to close at 2,736.56, with both benchmarks finishing at their lowest levels since April 7, according to FactSet data. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite Index US:COMP retreated 297.50 points, or 3.5%, to end at 8,263.23, marking its lowest close since April 13.