Asian equity markets ended in red on Wednesday as the US Senate's move to delay a vote on healthcare bill until after next week's July 4 holiday triggered concerns whether the Trump administration will be able to deliver pledged tax cuts and infrastructure spending. The euro hit a one-year high as digested hawkish comments from ECB President Mario Draghi that the central bank could trim its stimulus this year. The dollar was little changed versus the yen while crude prices were lower ahead of weekly inventory data from the US due later in the day. Japanese shares fell, dragged down by tech shares, after EU regulators fined Google a record 2.4 billion euros ($2.7 billion) for violating antitrust rules and a massive global cyber-attack hit IT systems across multiple geographies and business units. On the economic front, Japan's small business confidence improved for the second straight month in June, though slightly, survey data from Shoko Chukin Bank showed today. Further, Chinese shares ended lower as comments by Premier Li Keqiang raised concerns over an economic slowdown and regulatory tightening. The Indonesian market remained closed for the Eid-ul-Fitr holiday.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 3,173.20 | -18.00 | -0.56 |
Hang Seng | 25,683.50 | -156.49 | -0.61 |
Jakarta Composite | - | - | - |
KLSE Composite | 1,771.23 | -8.22 | -0.46 |
Nikkei 225 | 20,130.41 | -94.68 | -0.47 |
Straits Times | 3,215.70 | -3.83 | -0.12 |
KOSPI Composite | 2,382.56 | -9.39 | -0.39 |
Taiwan Weighted | 10,390.55 | -121.51 | -1.16 |