Asian markets were mixed Tuesday, with Japanese stocks finishing lower on exporters such as Sony Corp. and Toyota Motor Corp. after a decline on Wall Street, while Chinese stocks advanced on financials such as Ping An Insurance.
In Tokyo, the 225 issue Nikkei Stock Average dropped 1 percent to 15,480.19, while the broader Topix index declined 1.1 percent to 1,515.50.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index ended up 0.8 percent at 28,879.59 after opening lower, while the 43-issue Hang Seng China Enterprises Index, which was unsettled through the session, ended 0.2 percent higher at 17,195.09.
Shares of China Eastern Airlines rose on reports that China National Aviation Holding Co., the parent of China Eastern's state-owned peer Air China, had increased its stake in China Eastern to 12.07 percent from 11.79 percent.
In Hong Kong trading, shares of China Eastern rose 3.1 percent and Air China stock climbed 4.2 percent, while Cathay Pacific's shares slipped 0.7 percent. In Singapore trading, shares of Singapore Airlines added 1.1 percent. In Shanghai, shares of China Eastern ended 2 percent higher, while Air China stock gained 2.3 percent.
In Tokyo, shares of Sony fell 2 percent, while Toyota dropped 1 percent, reacting to the drop on Wall Street as well as a strengthened yen.
In Sydney, shares of Rio Tinto fell 2.6 percent and BHP Billiton lost 0.2 percent.
ELSEWHERE:
MUMBAI: India's Sensex was unsettled in afternoon trading, recently up 0.2 percent at 19,636.36.
SEOUL: South Korea's Kospi gained 0.8 percent at 1,917.83.
SINGAPORE: The Straits Times Index added 0.1 percent at 3,525.90.
TAIPEI: Taiwan's Weighted index gained 0.8 percent to 8,651.28.
SYDNEY: Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was little changed at 6,530.8.
WELLINGTON: New Zealand's NZX 50 index dropped 0.2 percent to 4,053.86.
with files from other wire services
