Asian markets settled down on Wednesday amid investor caution ahead of a congressional vote in Washington on a deal to raise the US debt ceiling. Chinese shares declined on concerns over uneven economic recovery following the release of disappointing manufacturing data. The official manufacturing PMI dropped to a five-month low of 48.8 from 49.2 in April while the non-manufacturing PMI fell to 54.5 from 56.4. Hong Kong shares declined amid fears of worsening ties between the United States and Beijing after China declined a US request for a meeting between the countries’ defence chiefs. Moreover, Japanese shares dropped as firmer yen hurts exporters.
| Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
| Shanghai Composite | 3,204.56 | -19.65 | -0.61 |
| Hang Seng | 18,234.27 | -361.51 | -1.98 |
| Jakarta Composite | 6,633.26 | -3.16 | -0.05 |
| KLSE Composite | 1,387.12 | -9.79 | -0.70 |
| Nikkei 225 | 30,887.88 | -440.28 | -1.43 |
| Straits Times | 3,158.80 | -28.76 | -0.91 |
| KOSPI Composite | 2,577.12 | -8.40 | -0.33 |
| Taiwan Weighted | 16,578.96 | -43.78 | -0.26 |
