During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index inched up 0.4%, Australia’s ASX/200 Index ended 0.45% lower, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index closed down 0.42%.
Markets on Wall Street closed with modest gains on Tuesday after the Conference Board said that its index of consumer confidence declined to a seven-month low of 70.4 in November from a reading of 72.4 in October.
The disappointing confidence data came after a flurry of upbeat U.S. housing data.
The U.S. Commerce Department said that the number of building permits issued in October rose 6.2% to a seasonally adjusted 1.034 million, the highest since June 2008, from September’s total of 0.970 million.
Separately, Standard & Poor’s with Case-Shiller said its house price index rose at an annualized rate of 13.3% in September from a year earlier, the strongest increase since February 2006 and above forecasts for an increase of 13%.
Minutes of the Fed’s October meeting published last week revealed that the central bank could start scaling back its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program in the “coming months” if the economy continues to improve as expected.
The Fed’s stimulus program is viewed by many investors as a key driver in boosting the price of global equities.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei edged lower for the second consecutive session as traders continued to monitor movements in the currency market.
USD/JPY fell to hit a daily low of 101.23, moving further off a six-month high of 101.90 hit earlier in the week. A stronger yen reduces the value of overseas income at Japanese companies when repatriated, dampening the outlook for export earnings.
Automakers Toyota and Honda saw shares fall 0.5% and 0.95% respectively.
Meanwhile, in Australia, the ASX/200 Index inched lower as losses in the mining sector weighed on the benchmark index.
BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto declined 1.45% and 1.15% respectively, while gold miners Newcrest Mining and Kingsgate Consolidated lost 4.1% 8.9% apiece.
Elsewhere, in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng edged higher after People’s Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan assured the market of more financial reforms, including free deposit rates and a more flexible currency.
Brokerages were higher following the comments, with CITIC Securities up 2.5% and Haitong Securities gaining 2.75%.
Looking ahead, European stock market futures pointed to a mixed open.
The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a gain of 0.1% at the open, France’s CAC 40 futures declined 0.1%, London’s FTSE 100 futures indicated a flat open, while Germany's DAX futures pointed to an increase of 0.1%.
Meanwhile in the U.S., equity markets pointed to a flat open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.05% gain, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.05% advance, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a rise of 0.1%.
The U.S. is to release data on durable goods orders as well as a report on manufacturing activity in the Chicago region and revised data on consumer sentiment.
In addition, the Labor Department is to release the weekly report on initial jobless claims one day ahead of schedule due to Thursday’s Thanksgiving holiday.
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