Asian shares were mostly higher Wednesday after the S&P 500 logged a fresh all-time high. Markets in Hong Kong were closed due to a tropical storm. Japan's Nikkei 225 index gained 0.3% to 23,121.32 after the country reported its exports fell 19% in July from a year earlier, better than expected and an improvement over a 26.2% drop in June. The Shanghai Composite index was lower but by early afternoon, it was less than 0.1% higher, at 3,452.38. The S&P/ASX 500 in Australia jumped 1% to 6,182.40, AP reported. In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude for September delivery lost 25 cents to $42.64 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was unchanged at $42.89 per barrel on Tuesday. Brent crude, the international standard, lost 34 cents to $45.12 per barrel. The U.S. dollar bought 105.53 Japanese yen, up from 105.46 yen on Tuesday. The euro rose to $1.1939 from $1.1932.