Asian shares mostly lower amid jitters ahead of trade talks

TOKYO – Asian shares were mostly lower Thursday amid investor jitters ahead of the latest round of trade talks between the U.S. and China.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 was down 1.3% in early trading to 21,333.22.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.4% to 6,291.60. South Korea’s Kospi dropped 1.0% to 2,145.82.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 1.6% to 28,549.70, while the Shanghai Composite shed 1.0% to 2,862.98.

On Wall Street, a late-afternoon reversal added to the market’s losses following a steep sell-off a day earlier as investors worry that the costly trade dispute between the world’s two biggest economies will escalate.

Financial markets turned volatile this week after President Donald Trump threatened to impose more tariffs on Chinese goods, a threat that is set to become reality early Friday.

Negotiations between the U.S. and China are scheduled to continue in Washington on Thursday, and will include China’s top trade official.

The S&P 500 index fell 4.63 points, or 0.2%, to 2,879.42.

The benchmark index had been up 0.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average inched up 2.24 points, or less than 0.1%, to 25,967.33.

ENERGY:

Benchmark U.S. crude fell 63 cents to $61.49 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, lost 69 cents to $69.69.

CURRENCIES:

The dollar slipped to 109.89 yen from 110.06 yen. The euro fell to $1.1187 from $1.1202. / gsg