Asian markets closed mixed on Wednesday, as tensions continue to ratchet up on the Korean Peninsula following a warning from North Korea of a nuclear attack on the U.S.
The Nikkei 225 in Japan plummeted 195.26 points, or 1%, to 18,552.61. The Nikkei share average is trading at its lowest since December last year.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index recovered 225.04 points, or 0.9%, to 24,313.50
North Korean state media said on Tuesday that the communist state was watching every move made by "enemy elements" and that its "nuclear sight (was) focused on the U.S. invasionary bases."
The development takes place as a U.S. aircraft carrier group makes its way toward the western Pacific following multiple missile launches from North Korea earlier in this year.
In corporate news, troubled Japanese conglomerate Toshiba filed results on Tuesday without a sign-off from its auditors, after twice-delaying the release in previous months. Toshiba also warned that future survival of the company was in doubt. The company's shares were down 1%.
Singapore reports February retail sales figures later in the day.
Australian markets nicked higher, though shares in Telstra fell more than 7% on Wednesday after TPG Telecom secured licenses in the government's latest auction of mobile spectrum and the company unveiled plans to build its own mobile network.
The U.S. dollar/yen pairing traded at 109.66, mid-afternoon local time, after trading at the 111 level earlier in the week. The U.S. dollar was traded at 100.64 against a basket of currencies, off the three-week high set on Monday, while the Aussie was weaker against the dollar at $0.7488 U.S., slipping below the $0.75 handle from the previous session.
CHINA
The CSI 300 in Shanghai dropped 7.24 points, or 0.2%, to 3,509.65
China earlier reported that annual consumer prices rose 0.9% in March, a tick below the 1% gain seen.
In other markets
In Taiwan, the Taiex index dipped 14.74 points, or 0.2%, to 9,817.68
The Kospi Index in Korea took on 5.06 points, or 0.2%, to 2,128.91
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index moved up 11.26 points, or 0.4%, to 3,186.01
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 slid 2.84 points to 7,251.54
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 gained 4.68 points, or 0.1%, to 5,933.96
