Asian Shares Mixed As Investors Await U.S. Debt Ceiling Vote

Asian shares were mixed in directionless trading Tuesday following a US holiday, as optimism about a deal on the US debt was dented by worries about the regional economy, Yuri Kageyama reported for the Associated Press (AP).

Photo Insert: Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 lost 0.4% in morning trading to 31,119.27. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was little changed, inching up less than 0.1% to 7,218.60.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 lost 0.4% in morning trading to 31,119.27. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was little changed, inching up less than 0.1% to 7,218.60. South Korea’s Kospi added 0.9% to 2,581.89.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dipped 0.5% to 18,458.25, while the Shanghai Composite lost 0.6% to 3,202.41.

Markets are closely watching the US consumer confidence data set to be released later in the day. In energy trading, US benchmark crude added 20 cents to $72.87 a barrel.

Brent crude, the international standard, advanced 5 cents to $77.12 per barrel. In currency trading, the US dollar slipped to 140.12 Japanese yen from 140.38 yen. The euro cost $1.0713, inching up from $1.0711.

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