HONG KONG — Energy stocks took a hit in Asian trade Tuesday as oil prices fell towards six-year lows, with warnings of further volatility ahead, but some rare upbeat Chinese trade data boosted Hong Kong and Shanghai.
Crude was dealt another blow Tuesday when key Opec member the United Arab Emirates said the cartel could not stop world prices plunging and called for a cut in US shale oil output.
Tokyo fell 0.64%, or 110.02 points, to finish at 17,087.71, although it pared initial losses as the yen weakened in afternoon trade.
Sydney fell 0.33%, or 18.01 points, to 5,404.7 and Seoul closed 0.2 lower, giving back 3.81 points to 1,917.14.
However, Hong Kong added 0.79%, or 189.51 points, to 24,215.97 and Shanghai rose 0.19%, or 5.98 points, to 3,235.30.
Manila closed 0.55% higher, adding 40.64 points to 7,399.00.
Shanghai and Hong Kong reversed initial losses following the release of Chinese trade figures.
The General Administration of Customs said exports rose 9.7% year-on-year in December, while imports fell 2.4%. That resulted in an almost doubling of the country's trade surplus during the month.
Europe's stock markets weakened at the start of trade on Tuesday, with sentiment hit as oil prices sank towards six-year low points.
London's FTSE 100 index lost 0.38% to 6,476.68 points, Frankfurt's DAX 30 fell 0.2% to 9,759.57 points and the CAC 40 in Paris shed 0.56% to 4,204.77 compared with the close on Monday.
Crude sank again Monday after Wall Street investment titan Goldman Sachs slashed its price outlook for the commodity, adding to anxiety about a global oversupply, weak demand and soft growth in the key Chinese and European markets.
The warning sent US shares tumbling, with the Dow down 0.54%, the S&P 500 off 0.81% and the Nasdaq tumbling 0.84%.
"There is no escaping crude's effect on global markets," Evan Lucas, a markets strategist in Melbourne at IG Ltd, said, according to Bloomberg News. "This will see first-half volatility ramping up throughout the globe."
Prices continued their descent Tuesday, after a mauling in the previous session.
Brent crude for February delivery fell $1.93 to $45.50 a barrel -- around its lowest point since April 2009. On Monday it had plunged more than five percent to end below $50.
US benchmark West Texas Intermediate shed $1.55 cents to $44.52 -- its weakest levels since March 2009 -- a day after losing 4.7.
Selling pressure increased when UAE Energy Minister Suhail al-Mazrouei told the Gulf Intelligence UAE Energy Forum in Abu Dhabi: "We cannot continue to be protecting a certain price.
"We have seen the oversupply, coming primarily from shale oil, and that needed to be corrected."
Prices have been falling since June but the pace of the slide accelerated in November when the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) decided to maintain its output.
That came as a huge supply of newly tapped oil from the US has come online.
On currency markets the yen eased against the euro and dollar after a morning rally dissipated.
The dollar fetched 118.33 yen compared to 118.27 yen in New York, while the euro was at 140.05 yen against 139.98 yen.
The single currency also bought $1.1836, compared with $1.1834 in US trade.