sensex
Brokers trade at their computer terminals at a stock brokerage firm in Mumbai, India. (SOURCE:REUTERS) Reuters

Equities in Asia edged lower after weaker crude oil prices took a toll on Wall Street. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.16 percent.

In commodities, crude oil prices stretched losses, weighed by forecasts for rising U.S. crude output and a gloomier outlook for global demand growth in a report from the International Energy Agency.

At 0630 GMT, the S&P BSE Sensex fell 0.25 percent at 32,859 while the broader NSE Nifty dropped 0.31 percent to 10,154.

On Monday, India's retail inflation picked up in October to a seven-month high, driven by faster rises in prices of food and fuel products, dampening chances of an interest rate cut by the central bank next month.

India's trade deficit widened to almost a 3-year high of $14 billion last month as imports surged, government data showed.

Among the top Sensex losers, ONGC fell 2.7 percent, Sun Pharma dropped 2.6 percent, ITC lost 1.8 percent while Tata Steel shed 1.5 percent.

Miners led losses after Chinese data on Tuesday pointed to slowing industrial output, fixed-asset investment and retail sales. Jindal Steel & Power Ltd fell 3 percent, Hindalco Industries 2.9 percent, National Aluminum Corp 3.3 percent, Vedanta 2.7 percent, Steel Authority of India 2.7 percent and Hindustan Zinc 2.2 percent.

Sun Pharmaceuticals Industries lost 2.6 percent after the company reported a near 60 percent decline in fiscal-second quarter profit because of weak U.S. sales.

But Fortis Healthcare jumped about 10 percent after it proposed to buy Singapore-listed RHT Health Trust for S$966 million.

Market breadth was in the favour of gainers, with about 2 stocks advancing to every 1 stock that declined.