Most of the Asian equity benchmarks are trading lower on Tuesday, in tandem with the sharp rise in crude oil prices following attack on Saudi Arabia's biggest oil processing facility amid geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. Worries on global economic slowdown also weighed on the market sentiments. Traders were also cautious as they awaited for cues from the Federal Open Market Committee’s two-day policy meeting which will be commencing today. However, Japan's Nikkei, which resumed trading after a long weekend is in positive lead amid the overnight surge in crude oil prices. Among the other Asian markets, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and Malaysia is in negative territory. Bucking the trend, South Korea, and Indonesia are advancing.
Straits Times down 14.33 points or 0.45% to 3,189.60, Hang Seng dip 274.83 points or 1.01% to 26,849.72, Taiwan Weighted contract 23.69 points or 0.22% to 10,874.44, Shanghai diminish 30.91 points 1.02% to 2,999.84, and FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI down 0.26 points or 0.02% to 1,600.99.
On the flip side, Nikkei 225 up 30.09 points or 0.14% to 22,018.38, KOSPI Index increases 3.02 points or 0.15% to 2,065.24, and Jakarta Composite higher by 6.65 points or 0.11% to 6,226.09.
