Asian markets fall on Wall Street lead

HONG KONG: Asian markets fell in morning trade Wednesday, following a decline on Wall Street and amid renewed scepticism over eurozone efforts to stem the debt crisis.

Tokyo was down 0.37 percent, Hong Kong slipped 0.25 percent and Seoul was off 0.36 percent. Sydney was flat, slipping 0.05 percent, as was Shanghai which edged down 0.03 percent.

US stocks closed sharply lower on Tuesday on concerns over American corporate earnings and a slump in confidence registered by a US small-business survey.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.65 percent, while The S&P 500 fell 0.81 percent and the tech-rich Nasdaq slipped 1.00 percent.

Meanwhile, concerns over the eurozone overshadowed the bloc's deal Tuesday to help Spain with 30 billion euros ($37 billion) this month for its distressed banks and an extension to a deadline to cut its public deficit.

"There is a broad framework to deal with the crisis, but uncertainty remains over whether it will work," said Kenichi Hirano, operating officer at Tachibana Securities.

"Participants will likely maintain their wait-and-see approach over the European situation."

Rates of return on Spain's benchmark 10-year bonds eased Tuesday after the deal at a meeting of eurozone finance ministers, slipping to 6.778 percent, sharply lower than the danger level of 7.023 percent at close the previous day.

But analysts remained sceptical, warning that European leaders may have once again done too little too late to convince the markets.