Asian shares drop slight despite gains on Wall Street

Yuri Kageyama, The Associated Press</span>
Published Tuesday, June 20, 2017 12:13AM EDT

TOKYO - Asian shares were slightly lower Tuesday, erasing initial gains, but Tokyo's benchmark rose, cheered by gains on Wall Street led by technology shares.

KEEPING SCORE: Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 added 1.1 per cent in morning trading to 20,294.48. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 edged down 0.5 per cent to 5,774.60. South Korea's Kospi was little changed, inching down less than 0.1 per cent to 2,369.30. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell less than 0.1 per cent to 25,908.98, while the Shanghai Composite fell 0.3 per cent to 3,135.21

WALL STREET: The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 20.31 points, or 0.8 per cent, to 2,453.46 and surpassed its old record, set nearly a week ago, by half a per cent. The Dow Jones industrial average added 144.71 points, or 0.7 per cent, to 21,528.99, and the Nasdaq composite jumped 87.25, or 1.4 per cent, to 6,239.01.

THE QUOTE: "The rally in U.S. markets reflects a situation where investors are being given no reason to sell. By the same token, valuations are full. Markets have been relatively capped, struggling to re-establish a strong uptrend," says Ric Spooner, chief market analyst at CMC Markets in Sydney.

CHINA WATCH: Investors are closely watching the MSCI decision on China A-share inclusion to indexes, expected later in the day. Speculation has been growing that MSCI might include Chinese shares to its benchmark.

CURRENCIES: The dollar rose to 111.65 yen from 111.12 yen late Monday in Asia. The euro fell to $1.1156 from $1.1194.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude added 7 cents to $44.50 a barrel. It fell 54 cents to $44.43 per barrel overnight. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 11 cents to $47.02 a barrel.

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AP Business Writer Stan Choe contributed from New York.

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