Asian Shares Mixed After Wall Street Rally Fuels Easing Oil Prices

Asian shares were mixed on Tuesday following a rally on Wall Street that was fueled by easing oil prices. The Tokyo Stock Exchange's benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 0.3% to 63,585.58, while the U.S. dollar inched up to 157.51 Japanese yen from 157.18 yen.

The recent joint U.S.-Japan currency intervention is still being weighed by regional investors. Analysts said that the effectiveness of such an intervention remains uncertain as it doesn't address the fundamental economic reasons behind the currency fluctuations, including inflation, interest rates and the relative strengths of the economies.

However, Matthew Ryan, head of market strategy at global financial services firm Ebury, noted that the latest effort could have some impact because it appears to signal a real change in monetary policy rather than just a one-time defensive move. He said, 'This is an historic and meaningful development for the yen, which materially improves confidence in our mildly bullish call for the currency.'

In energy trading in Asia early Tuesday, benchmark U.S. crude gained 84 cents to $81.18 a barrel, while Brent crude jumped $1.15 to $84.92 a barrel.