Asian stocks mixed after Wall St falls on rate hike worries

By JOE McDONALD
AP Business Writer

BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets are mixed after Wall Street fell on worries the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates as soon as March. Shanghai and Hong Kong advanced. Seoul and Sydney declined. Japanese markets were closed for a holiday. Oil prices rose. Investors were rattled last week after notes from the latest Fed meeting showed officials thought the U.S. job market is healthy enough that it might no longer need ultra-low interest rates and other stimulus. That was reinforced by U.S. employment numbers Friday that showed stronger-than-expected wages, though with only about half as much hiring as forecast. Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index declined but was within 2.5% of its record high.