Asian stocks drop after Wall Street Ends in red, Yen gains

Asian equity markets were trading with heavy losses as the markets opened on Wednesday, weighed down by weak cues from US markets overnight and a stronger Japanese yen.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index tumbled 1.01% to 20,632.03 points within the first hour of trade, while Tokyo's broader Topix gauge fell 0.86% to 1,659.42 points.

Korea's benchmark Kospi index fell 0.90% to 2,064.79 points this morning in Seoul, and Chinese markets are set to open shortly.

The benchmark Australian S&P/ASX 200 index plunged 0.96% to 5,652.10 points in Sydney, with banks and miners taking a hit. Inflation figures released earlier on Wednesday showed Australia's CPI rising 0.7% in the June quarter, or 1.5% year-on-year, gaining from the March-quarter increases of 0.2% and 1.3% respectively, due to a rebound in fuel prices.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.54% to 5,908.41 points this afternoon in Wellington.

Indian market has opened with small cuts. The Sensex is down 22.72 points at 28159.42, and the Nifty is down 18.65 points at 8510.80.