Asian stocks slipped into the red on Tuesday, with Chinese and Hong Kong markets leading losses, as investors await U.S. President-elect Trumps stance on the economy, immigration, foreign policy and more.
Gold hovered near a one-month low on dollar strength amid expectations that U.S. interest rates will stay higher for longer. Oil extended declines for a third day running on a soft demand outlook in China.
Chinas Shanghai Composite index fell 1.39 percent to 3,421.97 and the yuan slumped on fears of worsening Sino-worsening tensions after multiple media outlets reported that Trump is likely to appoint two men with track records of harshly criticizing China for key positions in his new administration.
It was said that Trump will appoint pro-India Congressman Michael Waltz as his National Security Adviser and foreign policy hardliner Marco Rubio as Secretary of State to prioritize U.S.-India relations and counter Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific region.
Hong Kongs Hang Seng index tumbled 2.84 percent to 19,846.88 despite reports that China is looking to slash taxes on home purchases to help revive a moribund housing market.
Japanese markets turned in a mixed performance, a day after Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba pledged more than $65 billion of support for the nations semiconductor and artificial intelligence sector over the next decade.
The Nikkei average dropped 0.40 percent to 39,376.09 while the broader Topix index finished marginally higher at 2,741.52.
While banks and automakers topped the gainers list, Tokyo Electron fell 2.8 percent and SoftBank Group dipped 1.1 percent ahead of their earnings released after the market close.
Seoul stocks fell sharply, with the Kospi average closing down 1.94 percent at 2,482.57.
Samsung Electronics gave up 3.6 percent and SK Hynix declined 3.5 percent after reports emerged that the U.S. has ordered Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) to halt shipments of advanced chips to China.
Australian markets ended slightly lower, dragged down by mining and energy stocks as stimulus efforts in China failed to meet expectations.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 slid 0.13 percent to 8,255.60 while the broader All Ordinaries index finished marginally lower at 8,515.20.
Across the Tasman, New Zealands benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index rose half a percent to 12,749.36.
U.S. stocks extended last weeks rally overnight amid optimism on proposed tax cuts and deregulation during Trumps second term.
The Dow and the S&P 500 rose 0.7 percent and 0.1 percent, respectively to reach new record highs while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ended little changed.