Japanese shares were mixed on Thursday after manufacturing activity in the country shrank for a fourth straight month in August.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index regained 9.44 points, or 0.1%, Thursday to 20,628.01
Manufacturing shares in Japan were mixed: Komatsu shares rose 0.2%, Kawasaki Heavy Industries added 0.8% and Mitsubishi Heavy was down 0.2%. Electronics manufacturers sold off as shares of Sony dropped 2.4%, Renesas Electronics fell 2.4% and Fujitsu dropped 1.4%.
Among energy concerns, Inpex fell 1.3% while Japan Petroleum added nearly 1%.
The Japanese yen traded at 106.44 against the U.S. dollar, stronger than a previous level around 106.64
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index tumbled 221.32 points, or 0.8%, to 26,084.72,
Korean markets retreated as major chipmakers Samsung dipped 1% and SK Hynix declined 2.6%
Energy names in Australia rose: Santos shares were up 3.5%, Oil Search gained 0.8% and Woodside Petroleum added 0.6%.
The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.6770.
In other markets
In Shanghai, the CSI 300 regained 11.75 points, or 0.3%, to 3,793.51
In Korea, the Kospi index slipped 13.64 points, or 0.7%, to 1,951.01
In Taiwan, the Taiex gained 3.98 points to 10,529.78
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index recovered 5.17 points, or 0.2%, to 3,127.74
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 recaptured 15.89 points, or 0.2%, to 10,725.22
In Australia, the ASX 200 climbed 18.54 points, or 0.3%, to 6,501.81
