Asian markets are mostly higher Wednesday as worries about the growing number of coronavirus infections in the United States and Europe has tempered optimism about a potentially safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine.
The S&P/ASX index in Australia finished 0.5% higher. The Shanghai Composite index and South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI index both finished up 0.2%, while the TSEC index in Taiwan gained 1.3%
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei index lost 1.1%. In late afternoon trading, the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong is 0.4% higher, and Mumbai’s Sensex is up 0.3%.
In commodities trading, gold is down 0.2%, selling at $1,880.00 per ounce. U.S. crude oil is selling at $41.56 per barrel, up 0.3%, and Brent crude is selling at $44.00 per barrel, up 0.5%.
In futures trading, all three major U.S. indices are trending negatively.