Asian stocks fell on Wednesday, AP reported. Market benchmarks in Shanghai, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia all declined. The Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.4% to 2,905.06 and Tokyo's Nikkei 225 sank 0.9% to 23,3154.90. Hong Kong's Hang Seng tumbled 2% to 26,511.11. South Korea's Kospi retreated 0.9% to 2,123.74 and Australia's S&P-ASX 200 sank 0.8% lower at 6,698.30. India's Sensex opened down 25 points at 40,319.59. New Zealand and Singapore also declined. Benchmark U.S. crude lost 25 cents to $56.56 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 6 cents on Tuesday to close at $56.80. Brent crude, used to price international oils, shed 29 cents to $61.77 per barrel in London. It retreated 12 cents to $62.06 the previous session. The dollar gained to 109.06 yen from Tuesday's 109.01 yen. The euro advanced to $1.1013 from $1.1010.
