Asian shares ease from two-year peak as economic woes intensify

Asian stock markets declined from a two-year peak on Wednesday. The drop could be attributed to investors’ dampened sentiment over a mixed bag of economic data. Meanwhile, oil reached a five-month high as a hurricane ravaged production in the Gulf of Mexico.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan recorded a 0.1% drop. This followed after the index reached its highest level since mid-2018 on Tuesday.  Moreover, Japan’s benchmark index Nikkei shed 0.1%.

The U.S. dollar was seen salvaging small setbacks in currency trading. However, the dollar’s movement remained inactive ahead of a key speech from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.

While investors’ sentiment grew as signs of progress manifested, weak economic data dimmed the outlook. August had seen consumer confidence in the United States plunging to more than a six-year low, data showed on Tuesday.