Asia shares spooked by US inflation scare, slip to 7-week lows Thursday

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 0.6%, though trade was thinned by holidays in a number of countries.Japan's Nikkei fell 1.8%, and touched its lowest since early January, while Chinese blue chips lost 0.7%.

SYDNEY: Asian shares slipped to seven-week lows on Thursday after a dismaying rise in U.S. inflation bludgeoned Wall Street and sent bond yields surging on worries the Federal Reserve might have to move early on tightening.

"Higher inflation is a definite negative for equities, given the likely rates response," said Deutsche Bank macro strategist Alan Ruskin.