FX.co ★ Asian stocks edge lower

Stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region edged lower this morning. Major stock indices began a downward trend, but some indicators managed to advance. The downside momentum can be attributed to negative dynamics in the equity markets of the United States.

Japan's Nikkei 225 shed 0.72%. Notably, the index has been declining for the third trading session in a row.

Japanese investors are assessing statistics on the country's economy. As it became known, Japan's core consumer prices fell by 0.6% in January from a year earlier. However, in the previous month, a drop in consumer prices was even greater. The country's CPI dipped by 1.2% in December. At the same time, most experts predicted a 1% reduction in January.

Another key indicator that is of great importance for the country's main regulator - the level of consumer prices excluding fresh food - also decreased by 0.6%, surging from a 1% drop in December. In this case, the result almost matched its initial forecast of a 0.7% reduction.

Japan's services PMI index also dipped in February, marking its lowest level in the last six months. The indicator fell to 45.8 from January's final of 46.1. Moreover, this was the 13th straight month of contraction in the service sector.

However, there are some positive reports. Japan's factory activity, on the contrary, is gaining ground. The Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index increased to 50.6 from its previous value of 49.8. Recall that a reading above 50 indicates an expansion of the manufacturing sector. Moreover, the industry has not seen such a high index for almost two years.

China's Shanghai Composite Index sank 0.57% today. The Hong Kong Hang Seng Index followed suit, losing 0.17%.

South Korea's KOSPI index was among the lucky ones which managed to edge higher. It increased by 0.68%.

The Australian S&P/ASX 200 index showed negative dynamics, shedding 1.34%. At the same time, statistics across the country are far from positive. In particular, retail sales declined by 0.6% in January, compared to a 4.1% drop in the previous month. However, analysts expected the indicator to contract by about 2%.

The Australian Services Purchasing Managers Index decreased to 54.1 in February. However, a reading above 50 points indicates that activity in this area is expanding. However, the previous reading was 55.8. This suggests that activity has still declined, and even considerably.