Asian stock markets close mixed

By Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) - Major stock exchanges in Asia closed mixed on Wednesday.

The Asia Dow, which includes blue-chip companies in the region, was down 36 points, or 1.1%, to 3,312 points at 1050GMT.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 stock exchange decreased 313 points, or 1.17%, to 26,386.

The Hang Seng, the benchmark for blue-chip stocks trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange, rose 11 points, or 0.06%, to 19,946.

China’s Shanghai stock exchange increased 71 points, or 2.49%, to finish at 2,958.

India's Sensex benchmark was down 537 points, or 0.94%, to 56,819.

The Singapore index declined 1.38 points, or 0.04%, to 3,320.