Asia shares weaker, oil up; investors weigh Saudi-Houthi escalation

Asian markets experienced a slight downturn on Wednesday, even as US stocks achieved new record highs. Oil prices climbed higher due to a storm threatening the Gulf of Mexico and heightened tensions between Saudi Arabia and the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen. The MSCI Asia-Pacific index, which excludes Japan, fell by 0.3 percent, while US stocks ended higher.

The S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq both hit all-time highs, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average also rose. US crude prices added 1.05 percent to $90.38 a barrel, while Brent crude increased by 1.06 percent to $101.65 per barrel. Around 12 million barrels per day of crude oil and 2 million barrels per day of refined products had already been shipped from the Middle East in recent days due to storm-related supply constraints and Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia.

In Europe, French bond yields dropped significantly following Marine Le Pen's pledge to cut spending and reduce the budget deficit, leading to a slight recovery in the euro. US Treasury bonds also saw a slight increase, with ten-year yields reaching 5.3 percent in Asian morning trading. US longer-dated yields climbed to a 24-year high due to persistent inflation and debt concerns.

Australian shares were flat, while Japan's Nikkei index fell by 0.86 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined by 0.63 percent, mainly due to a 4 percent drop in the biotech index. China's financial markets remained closed for a holiday. The dollar index rose marginally to 101.94 following a previous session decline, and traders scaled back expectations of a Federal Reserve rate increase this month to 19 percent from about 50 percent a week earlier.