Asian stocks stuttered in early trade on Wednesday after downbeat U.S. manufacturing data raised concerns about the health of the world’s biggest economy, while the dollar retreated from 8-1/2-month highs. Japan’s Nikkei (.N225) dipped 0.2 percent, Australian stocks (.AXJO) lost 0.5 percent and South Korea’s Kospi (.KS11) shed 0.3 percent. The Dow (.DJI) and S&P 500 (.SPX) both gained about 1 percent on Tuesday thanks to a rebound in health and consumer shares.