Asian markets retraced much of their early gains on Wednesday afternoon, with Chinese mainland markets dropping particularly sharply.
The Nikkei 225 gained 32.1 points, or 0.2%, to 16,906.54, on the back of a weaker yen.
In the afternoon Wednesday, after Japan's market close, the yen retraced all of its overnight declines, with the U.S. dollar/yen pair trading at 108.80, a 0.34 percent drop from its previous close.
The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong dumped 199.9 points, or 0.9%, 21,236.31
Major Japanese exporters closed mixed, with shares of Toyota down 0.7%, Nissan down 1%, Honda down 0.9% and Sony adding 3.9%. A strong yen is a negative for exporters, as it reduces their overseas profits when converted to local currency.
Moreover, many of these exporters were recently affected by the multiple earthquakes that hit the south of Japan late last week.
In company news, shares of Mitsubishi Motors tumbled more than 15% after one of its car models reportedly failed a fuel economy test.
Energy plays in Asia were mixed, with Santos adding 3.2%,,Woodside Petroleum closed down 1.6%, Inpex up 2%.
In Australia, the ASX 200's heavily-weighted financials subindex erased losses to finish up 0.09 percent, with the country's so-called Big Four banks - ANZ, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Westpac and NAB - ending mixed, between down 0.67 percent and up 0.69 percent.
Banking stocks sold off earlier during the session after Australian treasurer Scott Morrison announced banks will pay an additional A$120 million ($93.5 million U.S.) to increase resources of the market regulator, Australian Securities and Investment Commission, to better investigate financial misdeeds
Elsewhere, the country's resources producers advanced broadly, with major miners Rio Tinto up 4.08 percent, Fortescue higher by 4.2% and BHP Billiton adding 3.4%
The gains in resources stocks came after BHP issued guidance before market open; the miner cut its guidance for fiscal 2016 iron ore production by 10 million tonnes to 260 million tonnes, pointing to adverse weather and the initiation of an accelerated rail network maintenance program. BHP's guidance comes just a day after Rio Tinto cut its 2017 production guidance from its Australian iron ore mines.
CHINA
The Shanghai CSI 300 index fell off 57.28 points, or 1.8%, to 3,181.03, as traders continued to trim holdings on concerns over the country's state-owned enterprises.
Nomura, in a note Wednesday, advised taking money off the table in China's market.
Among oil plays, Chinese mainland shares of Sinopec down 6.4%
Chinese metal plays mostly retreated in the afternoon trade, with Baoshan Steel closing down 0.9% and Yunnan Copper lower by 4%
In other markets;
In Taiwan, the Taiex Index slumbered 119.24 points, or 1.4%, to 8,514.48
In Korea, the Kospi index subtracted 5.53 points, or 0.3%, to 2,005.83
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index lost 57.28 points, or 1.8%, to 2,949.95
New Zealand’s NZX 50 picked up 28.22 points, or 0.4%, to 6,901.26
In Australia, the ASX 200 added 27.14 points, or 0.5%, to 5,215.95
