Hong Kong stocks fell to their lowest close in two months on Wednesday after more signs of weakness in the Chinese economy.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index recovered 58.41 points, or 0.3%, to 18,723.52
The yen weakened further versus the U.S. dollar to ¥121.32, compared with ¥121.14 late Tuesday in New York.
The Hang Seng Index plunged 179.01 points, or 0.8%, to 23,896.98, its seventh straight losing session.
CHINA
The weaker-than-expected Chinese economic reports fueled concerns that the country’s economy is under increasing downward pressures.
The Shanghai CSI 300 eked up 4.04 points, or 0.1%, to 3,524.65
China’s industrial output rose 6.8% in the January-February period from a year ago, according to the National Bureau of Statistics, down from a 7.9% growth rate in December and also below a forecast 7.6% increase from a Wall Street Journal survey.
Meanwhile, retail-sales growth slowed to 10.7% in the first two months of this year, compared with an 11.9% rise in December. The growth also fell short of an estimated 11.5% gain from economists.
Fixed-asset investment in non-rural areas also saw a slower growth in the period, up 13.9% from a year earlier, down from a 15.7% jump in all of 2014.
In other markets
The Taiex index in Taiwan erased 13.35 points, or 0.1%, to 9,523.18
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index dipped 19.67 points, or 0.6%, to 3,378.59
The Kospi index in Korea shed 3.94 points, or 0.2%, to 1,980.83
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 fell 25.77 points, or 0.4%, to 5,861.98
The S&P/ASX index settled 31 points, or 0.5%, to 5,793.20
