Asian markets closed mixed on Tuesday, as investors digested the overnight pullback on Wall Street and awaited the Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 fell 99.93 points, or 0.5%, to 21,380.97
Tuesday's move lower also marked the third straight decline for the benchmark, extending its decline in the last session on the back of an ongoing political scandal that's hurting public support for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
The Hang Seng Index gained 36.17 points, or 0.1%, to 31,549.93, as gains in technology and consumer goods names were partially offset by losses in financials.
Hong Kong's Sunny Optical Technology popped 8.6% ahead of the market close after the Apple supplier reported net profit for the year ending Dec. 31 rose 128%.
In Korea, heavyweight tech names were mixed following the slump in tech names stateside overnight, with Samsung Electronics rising 0.91%. Among major sectors, automakers and manufacturing names also recorded gains.
Steelmakers traded mixed following news from Yonhap News Agency that South Korea is requesting for an exemption from recently announced U.S. steel tariffs. Posco closed lower by 0.7% while Hyundai Steel rose 1.2%.
In Australia, losses were led by the 1.4% fall in materials stocks. The heavily weighted financials sub-index held just above the flat line, adding 0.1%
Elsewhere in individual stocks, Singapore-listed commodities trader Noble Group fell 6.3% late afternoon. The move lower extended losses seen in the last session after the company said it would not be able to pay $379 million U.S. in debt notes due in 2018
In other markets
The CSI 300 eked up 3.45 points, or 0.1%, to 4,077.70
In Taiwan, the Taiex dropped 36.06 points, or 0.3%, to 11,010.84
In Korea, the Kospi regained 10.49 points, or 0.4%, to 2,485.52
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index recouped 15.02 points, or 0.4%, to 3,513.31
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 faded 4.97 points, or 0.1%, to 8,487.15
The ASX 200 dipped 23.05 points, or 0.4%, to 5,936.38
