Asian shares mixed Monday

Asian shares slipped Monday, AP reported.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index lost 0.4% to 26,366.60 and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong lost 1.4% to 22,445.66. The Shanghai Composite index was 0.1% lower at 3,446.44. The Kospi in Seoul was nearly unchanged at 2,678.17, while in Sydney the S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.4% to 7,023.70.

Oil prices surged Monday, with U.S. benchmark crude up $4.95, or 5.4%, at $96.54 per barrel.

Brent crude gained $4.68 to $98.80 per barrel, up 4.9% and approaching the $100 per barrel level it breached last week.

In currency trading, the U.S. dollar inched down to 115.46 Japanese yen from 115.77 yen. The euro was barely changed, at $1.1155, down from $1.1157.