Asian stocks stumbled on Tuesday, with China markets bouncing back after recording sharp losses earlier in the session as other major regional markets closed mixed. Meanwhile, investor worries over Beijing's trade relations with the U.S. continued to weigh on sentiment in the region.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 ditched 26.39 points, or 0.1%, to 21.785.54, extending Monday's steep losses but finishing the session above its intraday low. Airlines and oil producers clung to gains, while most other sectors eased.
Against the yen, the U.S. dollar traded at 110.86.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng plummeted 409.54 points, or 1.4%, to 28,545.57, after plunging more than 3% earlier in the day as markets there reopened for trade after a holiday. The services and materials sectors led losses. Heavily weighted financials also slumped, with HSBC down 1.8%, while technology blue chip Tencent slid 0.7% before the market close in Hong Kong.
In Korea, manufacturers and technology plays were mixed, with Samsung Electronics gaining 1.3% while steelmaker Posco lost 0.3%.
On the economic front, the Reserve Bank of Australia announced it would hold its cash rate steady at 1.5%, in line with what most economists surveyed
CHINA
In Shanghai, the CSI 300 inched up 1.32 to 3,409.28.
Investor sentiment was cautious as markets continued to watch developments on the trade front. A looming July 6 deadline is set to see the U.S. impose a 25% tariff on $34 billion worth of Chinese goods from more than 800 product categories. China has also announced that it will retaliate with duties on the same value of U.S. products.
The yuan softened past the 6.7 level for the first time since August 2017, although the currency later pared some of those losses. The on-shore yuan traded at 6.6754 to the dollar, while the offshore yuan, which is less tightly controlled, traded at 6.6910.
In other markets
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index subtracted 3.04 points, or 0.1%, to 3,235.90
The Taiex index skidded 62.22 points, or 0.6%, to 10,715.72
In Korea, the Kospi index gained 1.22 points, or 0.1%, to 2,272.76
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 hiked 111.11 points, or 1.2%, to 9,053.59
In Australia, the ASX 200 added 32.41 points, or 0.5%, to 6,210.21
