Most Asian stock
markets fell on Thursday after minutes from the Federal Reserve's last
meeting showed a lack of consensus on the future pace of U.S. interest
rate increases, while oil prices inched higher following a steep decline
a day earlier.
European
markets were set for a steady open, with financial spreadbetters
expecting Britain's FTSE 100 to be unchanged, Germany's DAX to open up
0.2 percent and France's CAC 40 to start the day 0.1 percent higher.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.1 percent. Japan's Nikkei slipped 0.5 percent as a stronger yen depressed the outlook for export earnings. South Korea's KOSPI and Australian shares both lost 0.1 percent.
China's bluechip CSI 300 index fell 0.5 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng slid 0.3 percent.
Trading in Asia has been buffeted this week by tensions on the Korean peninsula after North Korea fired a missile, which U.S. officials concluded was an intercontinental ballistic missile, into Japanese waters.
The United States said on Wednesday it was ready to use force if needed to stop North Korea's nuclear missile programme but said it preferred global diplomatic action against Pyongyang.
The Nasdaq closed up 0.7 percent on Wednesday as technology shares recovered. But the Dow Jones Industrial Average was flat and the S&P 500 gained just 0.15 percent.
Fed policymakers were increasingly split on the outlook for inflation and how it might affect the future pace of interest rate rises, according to minutes released on Wednesday of the central bank's June 13-14 policy meeting.
Several officials also wanted to announce a start to the process of reducing the Fed's large portfolio of Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities by the end of August, but others preferred to wait until later in the year.
U.S. 10-year Treasury yields dipped to 2.3232 percent, but remained near a seven-week high touched on Wednesday.
The dollar retreated 0.3 percent to 112.92 yen on Thursday. The dollar index, which tracks the currency against a basket of trade-weighted peers, was little changed at 96.259.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.1 percent. Japan's Nikkei slipped 0.5 percent as a stronger yen depressed the outlook for export earnings. South Korea's KOSPI and Australian shares both lost 0.1 percent.
China's bluechip CSI 300 index fell 0.5 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng slid 0.3 percent.
Trading in Asia has been buffeted this week by tensions on the Korean peninsula after North Korea fired a missile, which U.S. officials concluded was an intercontinental ballistic missile, into Japanese waters.
The United States said on Wednesday it was ready to use force if needed to stop North Korea's nuclear missile programme but said it preferred global diplomatic action against Pyongyang.
The Nasdaq closed up 0.7 percent on Wednesday as technology shares recovered. But the Dow Jones Industrial Average was flat and the S&P 500 gained just 0.15 percent.
Fed policymakers were increasingly split on the outlook for inflation and how it might affect the future pace of interest rate rises, according to minutes released on Wednesday of the central bank's June 13-14 policy meeting.
Several officials also wanted to announce a start to the process of reducing the Fed's large portfolio of Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities by the end of August, but others preferred to wait until later in the year.
U.S. 10-year Treasury yields dipped to 2.3232 percent, but remained near a seven-week high touched on Wednesday.
The dollar retreated 0.3 percent to 112.92 yen on Thursday. The dollar index, which tracks the currency against a basket of trade-weighted peers, was little changed at 96.259.
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