Asian shares mostly fall and US futures are little changed after US inflation data improves

Asian shares mostly fall and US futures are little changed after US inflation data improves 1 of 5 | A person walk in front of an electronic stock chart board showing Japan’s Nikkei index at a securities firm Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko) 2 of 5 | A screen shows the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics Co. stock price at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Aug. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) 3 of 5 | Currency traders work at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Aug. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) 4 of 5 | A currency trader watches monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Aug. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) 5 of 5 | A person walks in front of an electronic stock chart board showing Japan’s Nikkei index at a securities firm Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko) 1 of 5 | A person walk in front of an electronic stock chart board showing Japan’s Nikkei index at a securities firm Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko) 1 of 5 A person walk in front of an electronic stock chart board showing Japan’s Nikkei index at a securities firm Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 2 of 5 | A screen shows the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics Co. stock price at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Aug. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) 2 of 5 A screen shows the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics Co. stock price at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Aug. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 3 of 5 | Currency traders work at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Aug. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) 3 of 5 Currency traders work at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Aug. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 4 of 5 | A currency trader watches monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Aug. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) 4 of 5 A currency trader watches monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Aug. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 5 of 5 | A person walks in front of an electronic stock chart board showing Japan’s Nikkei index at a securities firm Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko) 5 of 5 A person walks in front of an electronic stock chart board showing Japan’s Nikkei index at a securities firm Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year] BANGKOK (AP) — Shares mostly declined Friday in Asia and U.S. futures were little changed after U.S. inflation data showed a better-than-expected improvement in July. Oil prices were holding steady after slipping in recent days.Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index gained 0.3% to 68,533.85, while the Kospi in South Korea rose 1.3%, to 6,924.74. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng lost 1% to 25,137.87. The Shanghai Composite index was 0.5% lower at 3,908.05. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 1.1% to 9,090.90.Taiwan’s Taiex lost 0.2% and the Sensex in India fell 0.5%. On Thursday, the S&P 500 rose 0.7% to an all-time high close of 7,798.99. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.1% to 53,839.99, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 0.8% to 26,803.03.Wall Street relaxed after a report showed prices at the U.S. wholesale level were 4.7% higher last month than a year earlier. While that is more painful than anyone would like, it’s not as bad as June’s 5.5% inflation rate at the wholesale level, and it was slightly better than economists expected. If inflation continues to trend that way, the Federal Reserve could decide to hold off on hikes to interest rates. Higher rates would help keep a lid on inflation, but they do so by intentionally slowing the economy and making it more expensive for everyone to borrow money. “The disinflation ducks are starting to line up, and with oil also backing off, the market has steadily stripped away the case for another near-term Fed hike,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary. 4 MIN READ 6 MIN READ 3 MIN READ Any increase by the Fed would be the first in more than three years. It also could anger U.S. President Donald Trump, who has been lobbying for lower interest rates. Oil prices eased, with Brent crude, the international standard, falling 2.1%. Early Friday, Brent was nearly unchanged at $87.06 per barrel. It’s been swinging sharply recently, zinging between $72 and $102 in July as hopes rose and fell that Trump could set a deal with Iran that might allow oil tankers to freely exit the Middle East through the Strait of Hormuz. A summertime holiday lull has slowed trading, but worries over oil supplies persist. Clashes between Iran-backed Houthi rebels and government forces in Yemen have raised fears that the country’s civil war could reignite and open another front in the Middle East.In other dealings early Friday, the U.S. dollar fell to 159.32 Japanese yen from 159.50 yen. The euro rose to $1.1543 from $1.1530.AP Business Writer Stan Choe contributed.