Asian shares fell Thursday after Wall Street hit the brakes on its big rally following disappointing corporate profit reports and warnings that the market had surged too far, too fast.
U.S. futures rose while oil prices dipped as data showed an unexpected increase in U.S. inventories.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index fell 1.6% to 33,140.47, with Japanese automaker Toyota leading losses on the benchmark, falling as much as 4%. The company said Wednesday it is recalling 1 million vehicles over a defect that could cause airbags not to deploy, increasing the risk of injury.
That came on top of news that Toyota small-car subsidiary Daihatsu had suspended shipments of all its vehicles in Japan and abroad after an investigation found improper safety testing involving 64 models, including some made for Toyota, Mazda and Subaru. Japanese transport ministry officials raided Daihatsu’s offices on Thursday.
