Investing.com - Asian stock markets were lower on Wednesday, as a downbeat overnight session on Wall Street dampened sentiment.
During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.1%, China’s Shanghai Composite declined 0.57%, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 closed 0.57% lower, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended down 0.71%.
Asia was given a negative lead from the U.S., where the Dow and S&P 500 closed lower as geopolitical concerns over Iraq overshadowed better-than-expected U.S. data.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei declined as market players shrugged off Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's reform plan, announced after the market close on Tuesday.
Index heavyweights Fast Retailing (TOKYO:9983) and Softbank (TOKYO:9984) lost 1% and 1.3% respectively, while Fanuc (TOKYO:6954) dropped 1.1%.
Elsewhere, in Australia, the ASX/200 Index ended at a two-week low as losses in the mining sector weighed on the benchmark index.
Atlas Iron (ASX:AGO) slumped 2.4%, while BHP Billiton (ASX:BHP) and Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO) retreated 0.7% and 0.8%.
Meanwhile, shares in mainland China and Hong Kong edged lower amid ongoing concerns over the health of China’s economy.
Looking ahead, European stock market futures pointed to a lower open. The Euro Stoxx 50 futures pointed to a loss of 0.6%, France’s CAC 40 dipped 0.5%, Germany's DAX inched down 0.5%, while London’s FTSE 100 indicated a decline of 0.35%.
Across the Atlantic, U.S. equity markets pointed to a modestly higher open. The Dow futures pointed to a gain of 0.1%, the S&P 500 indicated a rise of 0.1%, while the Nasdaq 100 pointed to a gain of 0.1%.
The U.S. is to publish data on durable goods orders, as well as final data on first quarter growth.