Asia report: Markets mixed as oil prices dive

Markets in Asia finished mixed on Wednesday, with oil prices depressed after fresh data from the US overnight on Tuesday showed a rise in stockpiles stateside.

In Japan, the Nikkei Stock Average finished 0.51% higher at 19,007.60, with major oil player Inpex finishing down 1.12%.

The yen was still relatively strong against the greenback, last advancing 0.12% to JPY 112.25 per $1.

That led to a rise for the major exporters, with Honda up 0.93%, Nissan adding 0.85% and Toyota improving 0.61%.

Mazda was among the odd ones out, finishing 0.45% lower, with Sony also declining by 0.72%.

Shares in Fujitsu softened 3.81%, after reports that its biggest shareholders Fujitsu Electric had plans to sell around $1bn of Fujitsu shares, representing just over 8% of the company.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite was up 0.46% at 3,167.44, while the Shenzhen Composite finished 0.75% higher at 1,941.79.

Chinese energy companies were lower, with CNOOC down 1.24% and PetroChina weakened 0.17%.

South Korea’s Kospi was 0.49% lower at 2,065.08, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index finished down 0.66% at 23,485.13.

Oil prices were lower on Wednesday, after data released during US hours on Tuesday showed a rise in crude inventory.

Estimates from the American Petroleum Institute showed stockpiles powered ahead by 14.2 million barrels last week.

“The herd, already nervous from the previous day's price action, turned en masse and ran off the cliff,” noted OANDA senior market analyst Jeffrey Halley.

Brent crude was last down 0.33% at $54.87 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate lost 0.58% to $51.87.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was 0.52% higher, with the energy sector dragging on the benchmark, as that subindex finished down 0.96%.

Of the major energy players, Beach Energy finished down 2.65%, Oil Search was 1.01% softer, and Santos dropped 1.29%.

Resources producer BHP Billiton was down 0.85%, after reports emerged that it was planning to stop production at at a mine in Chile as a strike amongst workers went ahead.

According to the reports, BHP Billiton could not give the Chilean government the safety guarantees it wanted for the 80 workers remaining at Escudo.

In New Zealand, the S&P/NZX 50 finished 0.01% lower at 7,066.27, with Metro Performance Glass the worst performer as it fell 3.2%, and casino operator SkyCity Entertainment the winner of the day, adding 4.2%.

The down under dollars were mixed, with the Kiwi precisely flat at NZD 1.3697 against the greenback, and the Aussie last 0.03% stronger at AUD 1.3107 per $1.