Sydney: Asian stock markets were subdued on Wednesday while major currencies barely budged as looming euro zone meetings to discuss the Greek debt crisis overshadowed a firmer finish on Wall Street.
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 modest with trade thinned by a holiday in Tokyo, leaving MSCI`s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan off a slight 0.03 percent.
Shares in Shanghai edged up 0.2 percent as pressure grew for more 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 USD 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 USD 10.75 billion of debt was easily its largest ever, but drew orders for no less than USD 39 billion. Among the six tranches on offer, it was able to borrow money for 40 years at just 4 percent.
