HONG KONG, September 16 Reuters - Asian shares gave up early gains to fall again on Thursday weighed by declines in China and Hong Kong, even after a strong lead-in from Wall Street which also had pushed the dollar to the lower end of its recent range.
The broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was last down 0.45%, while the Japan's Nikkei stood 0.47% to hit 31 - year high it hit on Monday.
It's quite uncertain and unsettling at present, we've had a few soft days on the back of worries about global growth and then suddenly markets, at least U.S. markets, conclude that 'it's not that bad after all', said Shane Oliver, chief economist at AMP Capital.
He added worries about inflation and supply chain issues could still weigh on shares in the coming weeks, and of course in China we are getting a slowdown in Asia. There were gains on Thursday in Hong Kong, up 0.65%, but the Australian benchmark fell 0.42% with property names continuing to drag - embattled developer China Evergrande Group fell another 8%.
CFDs were flat, the S&P 500 e-minis were U.S. stock futures.
Overnight U.S. stocks closed higher, as rising crude oil prices boosted energy shares and a raft of positive U.S. data boosted those who feel growth in the world's biggest economy should remain strong.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.68%, the S&P 500 gained 0.85% and the Nasdaq composite adds 0.82%.
That risk-on mood pushed the dollar lower overnight against a basket of other major currencies, but it was little changed in Asian hours with analysts at Westpac saying the greenback was in its recent range.
They said payroll and inflation data meant the U.S. Federal Reserve could take its time tapering its massive asset purchases - which would typically boost the dollar - while the downside is unlikely to develop anytime soon either, with concerns about Delta coronavirus variant impact on global rebound prospects continuing to swirl, as underscored by China's weaker August activity data. I.S. Treasury yields all dropped after a tight trading in Asian hours with the yield on benchmark 10-year note at 1.299% compared to its U.S. close of 1.304%. Westpac analysts said that, too, looked likely to be mostly range-bound.
Oil prices retreated, giving up some of this week's strong gains on the back of a larger than expected drawdown in crude oil stocks in the United States.
Brent crude, which touched its highest since late July on Wednesday, dipped 0.24% to $75.3 per barrel on Thursday, while U.S. crude dipped 0.22% to $72.45 a barrel.
Spot gold was flat at $1794.41 per ounce, with technical selling below the $380 level on Wednesday evening, in line with a bout of key selling.