Picture used for illustrative purpose. File

Gulf Today Report 

Asian shares were low on Wednesday as investors sold in order to profit from the recent rally on hope for economic recovery. 

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 dipped 0.6% to finish at 30,292.19.

South Korea's Kospi dropped 0.9% to 3,134.97. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.5% to 6,885.20. Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 1.3% to 31,146.10. Trading was closed in Shanghai for the Lunar New Year holiday.  

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European stock

European stocks declined on Wednesday due to losses in different parts of Asia on profit-taking. 

In Britain inflation has affected the shares, picking up more than was expected in January. 

The commodity-heavy FTSE 100 was down 0.5% by 0916 GMT, with British American Tobacco the biggest drag.

"The fact that restaurants and hotels provided a large upward pressure on CPI, despite largely being shuttered in January, provides ample cause for caution when interpreting broad economic indicators in a world where activity has been so horribly distorted by lockdown," said Laith Khalaf, a financial analyst at AJ Bell.

The FTSE 100 has recovered nearly 35% from its March 2020 lows and is now 12% below its peak last year, led by stimulus support, but a surge in infections and lockdowns have recently slowed the pace of gains.