Asian stocks higher after Wall Street falls on virus worries

Asian stocks were mostly higher Wednesday after Wall Street declined as hopes for a possible coronavirus vaccine were tempered by worries about the pandemic’s lingering impact.

Tesla rose 8.2% following an announcement that it will join the S&P 500 index next month. It is set to become one of the biggest stocks in the index after soaring nearly 390% this year.

Asian Stocks

• The Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.5% to 3,355.69.
• The Hang Seng in Hong Kong added 0.6% to 26,572.66.
• The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo lost 0.8% to 25,808.35 after data showed exports declined 0.2% in October from a year earlier.
• The Kospi in Seoul advanced 0.2% to 2,545.24 and Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 added 0.3% to 6,520.80.

Oil Prices

• In energy markets, benchmark U.S. crude lost 6 cents to $41.37 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
• The contract rose 9 cents on Tuesday to $41.43. Brent crude, the standard for pricing international oils, added 1 cent to $43.76 per barrel in London. It lost 7 cents the previous session to $43.75.

Currency

• The dollar declined to 104.08 yen from Tuesday’s 104.21 yen.
• The euro edged down to $1.1862 from $1.1864.