Asian Markets Follow Wall Street Retreat

Asian shares declined Wednesday, May 3, 2023, tracking losses on Wall Street ahead of a decision on interest rates by the Federal Reserve. US futures edged higher while oil prices were little changed, Elaine Kurtenbach reported for the Associated Press (AP).

Photo Insert: Some of the sharpest drops came from smaller- and mid-sized banks, which have been under heavy scrutiny as the banking system cracks under the weight of much higher interest rates.

Markets in Japan and China were closed Wednesday for holidays. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index lost 1.6% to 19,608.54. South Korea’s Kospi shed 0.9% to 2,500.50 and the S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney declined 1.1% to 7,184.90.

India’s Sensex lost 0.4% and shares also fell in Taiwan and Southeast Asia. On Tuesday, the S&P 500 fell 1.2% to 4,119.58 and the Dow dropped 1.1% to 33,684.53. The Nasdaq composite gave up 1.1% to 12,080.51.

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury slumped to 3.42% from 3.57% late Monday.

But early Wednesday it was at 3.54%. In other trading Wednesday, U.S. benchmark crude oil lost 3 cents to $71.63 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It tumbled $4 on Tuesday.

Brent crude, the basis for pricing international oils, gained 3 cents to $75.35 per barrel. The dollar fell to 136.07 Japanese yen from 136.54 yen late Tuesday. The euro rose to $1.1019 from $1.1003.

Some of the sharpest drops came from smaller- and mid-sized banks, which have been under heavy scrutiny as the banking system cracks under the weight of much higher interest rates.

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