By Mia Lamar
Asian shares were mixed on Wednesday following a fourth-straight
session oflosses on Wall Street.
Concern U.S. lawmakers will fail to arrange a budget deal
preventing a government shutdown next week weighed on U.S. trade.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) fell 0.4% and the S&P
500 Index (SPX) closed down 0.3%.
"The potential of a 2011-type fallout is burning red hot in the
minds of investors," Parry International Trading managing director
Gavin Parry said in Hong Kong. A protracted Washington budget
battle in 2011 resulted in an unprecedented downgrade of U.S.
government debt and jolted international financial markets.
Deal making was also on traders' minds in Tokyo following Tokyo
Electron Ltd.'s (TOELY) agreement to sell itself to U.S.-based
Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT). The all-stock deal announced late on
Tuesday values Tokyo Electron at $9.3 billion. Shares of the chip
manufacturer opened up 14% in Tokyo, hitting a trading limit.
Japan's Nikkei 225 Index fell 0.2%. The yen (USDJPY)
strengthened slightly to 98.62 yen for one U.S. dollar versus
Yen98.74 late on Tuesday in New York.
In Sydney, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.6% with help
from an advance in mining shares. Fortescue Metals Group (FSUMY)
rose 3.7% and Rio Tinto Ltd. (RIO) gained 0.3%.
Stocks in Seoul slipped as the Kospi Composite shed 0.6%.
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