Other Asia-Pacific markets
Shares in other Asia-Pacific markets were lower in Tuesday trade.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 declined 0.35% while the Topix index was 0.31% lower. South Korea’s Kospi dipped 0.18%.
Shares in Australia dipped, with the S&P/ASX 200 down 0.24%.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was little changed.
Overnight stateside, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 382.59 points lower at 30,223.89. The S&P 500 slipped 1.5% on the day to 3,700.65. The Nasdaq Composite also slid 1.5%, ending its trading at 12,698.45. Monday marked the first negative start to a year for the Dow since 2016.
Developments surrounding the coronavirus pandemic likely continued weighing on investor sentiment on Tuesday. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson recently announced a national lockdown on England as it seeks to combat the new Covid variant.
In Asia, local media reports in Japan have said that the government is considering declaring a state of emergency for Tokyo and several neighboring areas as early as Thursday in an attempt to stem the spread of the virus.
Currencies and oil
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 89.765 after a recent bounce from levels below 89.7.
The Japanese yen traded at 103.01 per dollar after weakening from levels below 102.8 against the greenback yesterday. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7691 following a recent decline from levels above $0.77.
Oil prices were lower in the afternoon of Asia trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures down 0.2% at $50.99 per barrel. U.S. crude futures dipped 0.1% to $47.57 per barrel.
Source: CNBC