Stocks dropped in Asia on Wednesday, AP reported. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 lost 2.2% to 19,427.38. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 plunged 3.6% to 5,725.90. South Korea's Kospi shed 2.9% to 1,905.50. Chinese shares erased morning gains. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.6% to 25,238.08, while the Shanghai Composite dipped 0.5% to 2,980.50. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 81 cents to $38.02 per barrel. It rose $2.86, or 8.3%, to $37.22 a barrel on Tuesday. Benchmark U.S. crude rose 50 cents to $34.86 a barrel. It rose $3.23 to $34.36 a barrel on Tuesday. The dollar fell to 104.32 Japanese yen from 105.64 yen on Tuesday. The euro rose to $1.1352 from $1.1283.
