Fresh record closing highs on U.S. markets failed to boost sentiment in Asia markets on Tuesday, with Japanese shares selling off as the yen surged.
The Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo dumped 273.05 points, or 1.6%, to 16,569.51.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index retreated 21.67 points, or 0.1%, to 22,910.84
The yen traded as high as 100.14 against the U.S. dollar, compared with levels above 101.00 on Monday. As of late Tuesday afternoon, the dollar/yen pair traded at 100.23.
Analysts told the media on Tuesday that the yen could see further strength in the coming weeks amid signs the market may be losing confidence in the Bank of Japan's ability to use monetary policy to give Japan's moribund economy a leg up.
Japanese exporters sold off on Tuesday, with Toyota shares down 1.3%, Nissan down 1.7% and Nikon off 2.8%. Fujitsu shares bucked the trend, closing up 2.9%
Energy plays in Asia closed mostly higher, with Santos gaining 2.5%, and Woodside Petroleum up 1%, but Inpex closed down 1%, after erasing a gain of more than 2% following the yen's surge.
In company news, Reuters reported the China Evergrande Group raised its stake to nearly 7% in the country's biggest home builder, China Vanke. Evergrande purchased another 2.1% stake in Vanke for $823 million U.S.
Shenzhen-listed shares of Vanke were up 10%, while Hong Kong listed shares of China Vanke were up 2.9%. Shares of China Evergrande added 1%.
After the Australian market close, major miner BHP Billiton reported its worst loss ever, coming in $6.39 billion U.S. in the red for the year ended June 30, swinging from a profit of $1.91 billion a year earlier. The company said it is determined to pay a final divided of 14 U.S. cents, fully franked, per share for the current period.
BHP's losses were attributed to a combination of factors including lower commodity prices and settlement costs for a dam disaster in Brazil that caused multiple casualties.
BHP shares closed the Australian trading session up 0.5% to 20.25 Australian dollars.
In other markets
The Shanghai CSI 300 subtracted 15.17 points, or 0.5%, to 3,378.25
The Taiex Index in Taiwan dropped 38.15 points, or 0.4%, to 9,110.36
In Korea, the Kospi index reopened for business after a long weekend, losing 2.71 points, or 0.1%, to 2,047.76
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index doffed 8.41 points, or 0.3%, to 2,858.80
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 eased off 77.68 points, or 1.1%, to 7,310.67
The ASX 200 docked 7.98 points, or 0.1%, to 5,531.98
