HONG KONG, Aug 10: Asian stocks closed mostly lower on Thursday after falls on Wall Street, a surge in oil prices and an alleged terrorist plot prompted bouts of solid profit taking, dealers said.
Most markets opened on a negative tone set by Wall Street, with concerns over the US economy and interest rates again playing on investor nerves.
This plus a possible rate hike in Japan resulted in Tokyo closing flat, while Sydney was slightly lower and sharper falls were registered in Manila, Wellington and Seoul.
TOKYO: Share prices were stuck in a standstill as investors refused to take aggressive positions ahead of the Bank of Japan's rate decision and Japanese growth data.
The Nikkei-225 index fell 25.68 points or 0.16 per cent to 15,630.91. Volume fell to 1.72 billion shares from 1.75 billion on Wednesday.
HONG KONG: Share prices closed 0.72 per cent lower as investors locked in profits following Wednesday's strong gains and falls on Wall Street overnight amid worries over crude oil prices and a slowing US economy.
SYDNEY: Share prices closed 0.18 per cent lower following an overnight drop on Wall Street, although bargain-hunting emerged to minimize the losses.
The S and P/ASX200 lost 8.8 points to 4,953.2. A total of 1.01 billion shares worth 3.84 billion dollars changed hands.
SINGAPORE: Share prices closed 0.83 per cent lower on news that British police had foiled an alleged terrorist plot to blow up planes flying between London and the United States.
KUALA LUMPUR: Share prices closed firmer with last-minute buying supporting the benchmark as plantation stocks gained on the back of stronger crude palm oil futures prices.
JAKARTA: Share prices dropped 2.0 per cent on profit-taking spurred by reports of the temporary closure of Britain's Heathrow airport after police uncovered an alleged terror plot.
WELLINGTON: Share prices closed 0.65 per cent lower as regulator jitters unsettled investors following government announcements on the energy sector.
The NZX-50 index was down 22.9 points at 3,514.03 on turnover worth 106.73 million New Zealand (67.04 million US) dollars.
MUMBAI: Share prices closed flat in choppy trade that bucked other Asian markets which weakened on fears of a slowdown in the US economy.—AFP