Asian stocks traded on a mixed note Monday, with Japan's Nikkei average pulling back from a multimonth high as shares of Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co. and other automakers came under pressure.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index retreated 202.31 points, or 1.15 percent, to finish the day's trading at 17,344.80 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 108.06 points, or 0.53 percent, to 20,455.62.
Nissan Motor Co. slumped 8.40 percent after the Tokyo-based automaker on Friday said it slashed its annual forecast while reporting a 22 percent decline in earnings for the October-December period.
Nissan recently ceded its spot as Japan's second-largest automaker to Honda Motor Co., and has struggled to boost profits amid sagging sales.
Traders said Nissan's poor quarterly performance dampened sentiment among investors, who sold other auto stocks.
Honda shed 3.62 percent and Toyota Motor Corp. dropped 1.64 percent.
Elsewhere:
BANGKOK: Thai shares edged up 0.6 percent to 674.42 points mainly on banking and energy blue chips.
JAKARTA: Indonesia shares slipped 0.7 percent to 1,768.54 points, dragged down by worries that heavy flooding in capital Jakarta will hurt the economy.
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian shares advanced, led by construction companies that attracted foreign funds. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index jumped 1.3 percent to 1,225.73 points.
MANILA: Philippine share prices rose in heavy-volume trading, as investors shifted from overbought clue chips to second- and third-line stocks. The Philippine Stock Exchange Index moved up 12.72 points, or 0.4 percent, to 3,281.90.
MUMBAI: Indian shares ended at a fresh record, led by gains by car stocks on hopes of an industry friendly federal budget later this month. The Bombay Stock Exchange's 30-stock Sensitive Index, or Sensex, rose 112.13 points, or 0.8 percent, to 14,515.90.
SEOUL: South Korean shares rose, led by demand from foreign investors for financial stocks. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 4.81 points, or 0.3 percent, to 1,417.95.
SHENZHEN/SHANGHAI: Chinese stocks extended their losing streak, with financial companies hit by strong selling pressure. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index plunged 2.3 percent to 2,612.54 points. The smaller Shenzhen Composite Index inched up 0.3 percent to 642.91 points.
SINGAPORE: Singapore's shares rose to a third-straight record high, led by banks and other blue-chip stocks. The benchmark Straits Times Index rose 5.64 points, or 0.2 percent, to 3,223.32.
TAIPEI: Taiwanese shares were flat as investors were concerned about fourth-quarter earnings from technology companies. The Weighted Price Index of the Taiwan Stock Exchange added just 6.09 points, or 0.1 percent, to close at 7,783.12.
WELLINGTON: New Zealand shares finished marginally higher as the weakness of bellwether Telecom Corp. continued to offset the market's positive wider tone. The benchmark NZX-50 index rose 4 points, or 0.1 percent, to 4,148.58.
SYDNEY: Australian shares dropped, pulled down by a decline by resource stocks after sharp falls on the London Metals Exchange last week and ahead of BHP Billiton's results Wednesday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index fell 9.4 points, or 0.2 percent, to 5,822.1.
With files from wire services
