BANGKOK (AP) - Asian stock markets fell Friday, deflated after U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke gave no hint of immediate action to jump-start growth in the world's No. 1 economy.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index fell 2 percent. South Korea's Kospi dropped 0.6 percent. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 1.1 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.4 percent.
Benchmarks in Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, the Philippines and New Zealand also fell. Mainland Chinese shares moved higher by midday.
Oil prices fell to below $83 a barrel Friday in Asia.
Benchmark oil for July delivery was down $1.99 to $82.83 per barrel at late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
First Coast News