Asian stock markets ended mainly lower Tuesday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 slipping into the red as exporters such as Sony and Advantest retreated, while a stellar Shanghai debut for China Cosco Holdings helped lift the mainland Chinese benchmark to a positive close.
In Tokyo, Nikkei 225 index fell 21.37 points, or 0.12 percent, to 18,066.11 points while in Hong Kong, the blue chip Hang Seng Index fell 18.78 points, or 0.1 percent, to 21,803.57.
Traders are cautious ahead of domestic economic data due out later this week, said Hiroyuki Fukunaga, chief strategist at Rakuten Securities. May unemployment and consumer prices data are due out Friday.
Trading house Mitsubishi was down 2.4 percent at 3,270 yen (US$26.49) and Elpida Memory down 3.3 percent to 5,610 yen (US$45.46).
ELSEWHERE:
BANGKOK: Thai shares fell 0.4 percent to 766.97 points in lackluster trade.
JAKARTA: Indonesia shares ended flat, with the main index edging up 0.1 percent to 2,153.54 points.
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian shares dipped 0.7 percent to 1,366.99 points in heavy volume.
MANILA: Philippine shares inched up, lifted by foreign buying in heavyweights like Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. The benchmark 30-company Philippine Stock Exchange Index edged up 3.54 points, or 0.1 percent, to 3,657.12.
SEOUL: South Korean shares extended losses into a third straight session as small-capitalization stocks declined on moves by the country's financial watchdog to limit stock trading on credit by retail investors. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index, or Kospi, dropped 8.18 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,749.55.
SHANGHAI: Chinese stocks rose, rebounding from earlier losses as investors snapped up bargains and foreign-currency B shares. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index advanced 0.8 percent to 3,973.37 points. The index had dropped a combined 6.8 percent Friday and Monday. The Shenzhen Composite Index of China's smaller, second market rose 1.6 percent to 1,145.47.
SINGAPORE: Singapore shares dropped for the third consecutive session, mimicking similar drops in other Asian markets as the market reeled from profit-taking and suffered from the backlash of Wall Street's overnight fall. The Straits Times Index fell 55.23 points, or 1.54 percent, to 3,525.10.
TAIPEI: Taiwan shares fell as investors took profit following the local market's recent rally and in reaction to weakness in the U.S. stock market. The Weighted Price Index of the Taiwan Stock Exchange fell 73.44 points, or 0.8 percent, to 8,865.75.
WELLINGTON: New Zealand shares finished lower as negative offshore sentiment continued to spread in the absence of any local drivers -- a trend brokers expect to continue in the near term. The NZX-50 dropped 19 points, or 0.4 percent, to 4,252.03 in moderate volume.
SYDNEY: Australian shares closed slightly weaker on light volumes during school holidays, and amid caution ahead of the end of the local financial year June 30. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 declined 21.2 points, or 0.3 percent, to 6,308.6.
With files from wire services
