Asian stock
markets turned cautious on Wednesday while the U.S. dollar crept higher
as looming euro zone meetings to discuss the Greek debt crisis
threatened to produce more confusion than clarity.
Euro zone finance
ministers meet later on Wednesday and EU leaders on Thursday, but
officials are already downplaying the chance of a breakthrough.
Moves were minor with trade thinned by a holiday in Tokyo, leaving MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan off a slight 0.2 percent.
Shares
in Shanghai edged up 0.2 percent as pressure grew for more economic
stimulus after a very low reading on inflation stirred fears of
deflation.
China's central bank on Tuesday said it was ready to fight a downturn, while not taking excessive risks with credit creation.
Australia's main index slipped 0.6 percent even as a survey showing consumer confidence had surged to 13-month peaks in the wake of last week's cut in domestic interest rates.
The Dow had ended up 0.79 percent, while the S&P 500 gained 1.07 percent and the Nasdaq 1.3 percent.
Apple
Inc became the first U.S. company worth more than $700 billion as its
shares rose 1.9 percent after it priced Swiss franc bonds.
Microsoft also priced a new issue of bonds that starkly illustrated the desperate search for yield among investors in a low-inflation world.
The tech giant's sale of $10.75 billion of debt was easily its largest ever, but drew orders for no less than $39 billion. Among the six tranches on offer, it was able to borrow money for 40 years at just 4 percent.
Treasuries had a tougher time amid growing talk the Federal Reserve could start raising interest rates by mid-year.
Yields on 10-year notes were hovering at 1.99 percent having touched a four-week peak of 2.016 percent.
The rise in yields helped the dollar tick up to a one-month high at 119.63 yen, while the dollar index held steady at 94.769.
The euro struggled to find any direction amid all the brinkmanship over Greece and last stood at $1.1317.
Moves were minor with trade thinned by a holiday in Tokyo, leaving MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan off a slight 0.2 percent.
China's central bank on Tuesday said it was ready to fight a downturn, while not taking excessive risks with credit creation.
Australia's main index slipped 0.6 percent even as a survey showing consumer confidence had surged to 13-month peaks in the wake of last week's cut in domestic interest rates.
The Dow had ended up 0.79 percent, while the S&P 500 gained 1.07 percent and the Nasdaq 1.3 percent.
Apple
Inc became the first U.S. company worth more than $700 billion as its
shares rose 1.9 percent after it priced Swiss franc bonds.Microsoft also priced a new issue of bonds that starkly illustrated the desperate search for yield among investors in a low-inflation world.
The tech giant's sale of $10.75 billion of debt was easily its largest ever, but drew orders for no less than $39 billion. Among the six tranches on offer, it was able to borrow money for 40 years at just 4 percent.
Treasuries had a tougher time amid growing talk the Federal Reserve could start raising interest rates by mid-year.
Yields on 10-year notes were hovering at 1.99 percent having touched a four-week peak of 2.016 percent.
The rise in yields helped the dollar tick up to a one-month high at 119.63 yen, while the dollar index held steady at 94.769.
The euro struggled to find any direction amid all the brinkmanship over Greece and last stood at $1.1317.
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