World stocks mixed after Wall Street decline

By JOE McDONALD, AP Business Writer Joe Mcdonald, Ap Business Writer – 25 mins ago

Tokyo and Sydney were down while Shanghai and Hong Kong gained. As trading got started in Europe, France‘s CAC-40 and Germany‘s DAX were moderately lower while Britain‘s FTSE 100 advanced. Oil prices surmounted $72 a barrel while the dollar gained against the yen and slipped versus the euro.

"The overriding concern is Greece and what that means in a global sense," said Kirby Daley, senior strategist at Newedge Group in Hong Kong.

China‘s benchmark Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.5 percent to 2,948.84 and Hong Kong‘s Hang Seng index advanced 1.2 percent, or 239.39, to 19,790.28. Seoul‘s Kospi rose 1.1 percent, or 17.70, to 1,570.49.

Investors worry that debt problems in Greece, a relatively small part of the European economy, could spread to the rest of the 16-nation bloc that uses the euro. Other countries being watched closely include Portugal and Spain.

Asian stocks are so sensitive to the health of Western export and financial markets that analysts say even regional developments as severe as Toyota Motor Corp.‘s struggles with a spate of safety problems have little impact.

Trading in China has been listless this week as investors hunker down ahead of a weeklong closure of mainland exchanges for next week‘s Lunar New Year holiday.

Oil prices rose above $72 a barrel in Asia with benchmark crude for March delivery up 26 cents at $71.78.

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