Asian shares fall on growth concerns, focus shifts to Fed minutes

Asian shares fell on Wednesday after a slowdown in China’s services activity dented sentiment and as markets turned their focus to the release of Federal Reserve minutes and a key U.S. jobs report later in the week.

Market conditions were subdued following the Independence Day public holiday on Wall Street on Tuesday. S&P 500 futures dipped 0.1% and Nasdaq futures fell 0.2%.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan skidded 0.7%. Japan’s Nikkei also fell 0.4%, marking the second straight session of declines after climbing to fresh three-decade highs.

Australia’s resources heavy shares fell 0.2% after the Reserve Bank of Australia held rates steady on Tuesday but warned of more tightening ahead.

In China, a survey showed the expansion in the services sector continued to slow in June, adding to signs that the country’s post-COVID recovery is losing steam.

Chinese blue chips fell 0.5% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index slumped 1.3%.

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