Asian stock markets pared gains Thursday, AP reported. Japan's Nikkei 225 drifted 0.1 percent lower to 14,815.98 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng sank 0.4 percent to 21,807.55. In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite rose 0.9 percent to 2,015.03. South Korea's Kospi added just 0.1 percent to 1,934.38. The Bank of Korea kept its interest rate steady for another month but its governor said domestic consumer demand is picking up. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.5 percent to 5,412.60. Stocks in Taiwan and Indonesia also advanced. New Zealand's currency and its stock market rose after the country's central bank raised its benchmark interest rate by quarter of a percentage point to 2.75 percent in the first such rate hike by a developed nation since the 2008 global financial crisis. Oil eked out gains with a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude for April delivery up 8 cents to $98.07 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $2.04, or 2 percent, to close at $97.99 on Wednesday. In currencies, the euro rose to $1.3940 from $1.3904 late Wednesday. The dollar fell to 102.59 yen from 102.72 yen.
