(MENAFN- AFP) Asian markets were mixed on Tuesday after a Chinese rate cut fuelled a rally in the previous session, while Tokyo played catch-up following a long holiday weekend.
The yen made inroads against the dollar and euro after the Bank of Japan chief indicated he was concerned about the impact of a weak currency on the economy, while minutes showed policymakers split on last month's stimulus boost.
Tokyo rose 0.29 percent, adding 50.11 points to finish at 17,407.62, while Seoul was slightly higher, gaining 1.67 points to 1,980.21.
Sydney shed 0.50 percent, or 27.0 points, to end at 5,334.8, while in the afternoon Hong Kong was down 0.17 percent.
Shanghai rallied 1.37 percent, or 34.72 points, to close at 2,567.60 -- adding to a 1.85 percent rise Monday.
Traders largely took their foot off the pedal after Monday's surge that came on the back of China's surprise decision last week to slash interest rates for the first time in two years, in a bid to kickstart growth.
Wall Street provided a positive lead Monday ahead of the release of US third-quarter growth figures later in the day as well as data on consumer confidence, home prices and business activity.
The Dow edged up 0.04 percent to its third straight record close and the S&P 500 gained 0.29 percent, also an all-time high. The Nasdaq tacked on 0.89 percent.
In foreign exchange markets the yen enjoyed a pick-up after BoJ governor Haruhiko Kuroda said policymakers were aware of the impact of its sharp decline on the world's number-three economy.
- Worry over yen weakness -
The currency has tumbled to multi-year lows against the dollar and euro since the central bank ramped up its stimulus programme on October 31.
"We will monitor (market movements) carefully, including their impact on the actual economy," Kuroda was quoted by the Nikkei business daily as telling business leaders in a speech on Tuesday.
Also Tuesday minutes showed the bank's policy board split 5-4 in favour of the ramped-up asset-purchasing, with some warning a weak yen would batter small domestic firms owing to soaring import costs.
Others questioned its likely ultimate impact on boosting growth.
In afternoon trade the dollar was at 117.87 yen, down from 118.25 yen in US trade, while the euro bought 146.42 yen, compared with 147.10 yen in New York.
The single currency was also at $1.2426 against $1.2439.
However, the single currency is up from levels seen earlier Monday in Asia after the Ifo index of German business confidence rose this month, providing some welcome news from the eurozone's biggest economy which has shown signs of struggling recently.
"The downturn in the German economy has ground to a halt for the moment at least," said Ifo chief Hans-Werner Sinn.
Oil prices were mixed before a closely watched meeting of the OPEC cartel, which will decide whether to cut output to prevent prices falling further.
US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for January delivery rose nine cents to $75.87 while Brent crude for January fell eight cents to $79.60 in afternoon trade.
Gold was at $1,199.42 an ounce, compared with $1,195.75 late Monday.
In other markets:
-- Taipei ended marginally lower, dipping 6.09 points to 9,116.24.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. rose 0.36 percent to Tw$139.0 while smartphone maker HTC fell 0.37 percent to Tw$135.0.
-- Wellington fell 0.53 percent, or 29.01 points, to 5,442.68.
Fletcher Building slipped 1.6 percent to NZ$8.17 and Chorus lost 2.0 percent to end at NZ$2.00, while Spark shed 2.9 percent to NZ$3.07.
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