Shares fell in Asia on Wednesday, AP reported. The Nikkei 225 ended at 22,028.32, as manufacturers' shares also were hurt by a stronger yen. Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 0.7 percent to 28,946.87 and the Shanghai Composite index also lost 0.8 percent to 3,403.53. Australia's S&P ASX 200 fell 0.6 percent to 5,934.20 and the Kospi of South Korea declined 0.3 percent to 2,518.25. Shares in Southeast Asia were mostly lower. Benchmark U.S. crude sank 67 cents to $55.03 per barrel, or 1.2 percent, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It fell $1.06, or 1.9 percent, on Tuesday to settle at $55.70 per barrel, the biggest single-day decline since October. Brent crude, used to price international oils, shed 78 cents to $61.43 per barrel. It declined 95 cents, or 1.5 percent, to close at $62.21 a barrel in London. The dollar fell to 113.05 yen from 113.43 yen on Tuesday. The euro gained to $1.1807 from $1.1796.
