GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian shares fall as Delta variant casts shadow over growth

Asian shares failed to catch a firm lead from a bumper Wall Street session on Friday as the spread of the Delta variant of the coronavirus across the region heightened worries about the its economic recovery. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 0.35%, dragged down by Chinese blue chips , which fell 0.56% and Hong Kong down 0.46%. Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.11%.