From Nasdaq:

The Asian stock markets are mostly down following the release of the minutes of the US Fed’s meeting, reflecting the uncertainty over near-term interest rate cuts. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 0.33 percent, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index is down 1.24 percent due to negative global cues. In Australia, miners, financial, and technology stocks are declining, while oil stocks are mostly higher. Among the big four banks, gold miners, and major exporters, most stocks are declining, while a few are gaining. In Japan, market heavyweight SoftBank Group and Uniqlo are losing, while automakers are gaining. Mercer and Nitori Holdings are among the major losers. In the US, stocks ended lower on Wednesday, and crude oil prices rebounded. On Wall Street, the Nasdaq closed lower for the fourth session, while the Dow and S&P 500 also fell. In Europe, the FTSE 100 Index fell by 0.5 percent, and the German DAX Index and French CAC 40 Index tumbled by 1.4 and 1.6 percent, respectively. WTI crude for February delivery surged 3.3 percent to $72.70 a barrel. The currency market shows the Aussie dollar at $0.673, and the US dollar in the lower 143 yen-range. New Zealand, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan are down by 0.1 to 0.9 percent. In contrast, Malaysia and Indonesia are up 0.3 and 0.4 percent respectively.



Read more: Asian Markets Track Global Markets Lower