Stocks in Asia-Pacific were mixed on Wednesday as investors monitored bond yields following a recent rise.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 shed 175.56 points, or 1.3%, to 30,467.75.
Japan’s exports rose 6.4% in January as compared with a year earlier, according to trade statistics released Wednesday by the country’s Ministry of Finance.
The Japanese yen traded at 105.95 per U.S. dollar, having weakened from levels below 105.2 against the greenback seen earlier this week.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng leaped 338.28 points, or 1.1%, to 31,084.84.
Taiwan markets surged with shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company soaring 4.9%.
The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.775 after seeing levels around $0.78 yesterday.
In other markets
Markets in mainland China remained closed for holiday.
In Singapore, the Straits Times index dropped 14.91 points, or 0.5%, to 2,920.42.
In Korea, the Kospi lost 29.52 points, or 0.9%, to 3,133.73.
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 hiked 63.25 points, or 0.5%, to 12,673.97.
In Australia, the ASX 200 dipped 32.05 points, or 0.5%, to 6,885.22.
