Asia report: Markets mostly lower amid confused reports from the White House

Most markets in Asia finished lower on Tuesday, following a weak finish on Wall Street overnight as trade tensions between Washington and Beijing continued.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 eked out gains of 0.02% to 22,342.00, as the yen strengthened 0.16% against the dollar to last trade at JPY 109.59.

The Tokyo benchmark was below the waterline for much of the session, but a number of its major components recovered late in the day.

Banks and utility stocks finished ahead, but technology plays faltered, with SoftBank Group ending down 2.45%.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite slid 0.51% to 2,844.66, and the smaller, technology-heavy Shenzhen Composite turned green to finish up 0.56% at 1,596.17.

South Korea’s Kospi was off 0.3% at 2,350.92, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong fell 0.28% to 28,881.40.

The properties and construction sector led the losses in the special administrative region, with Country Garden Holdings finishing down 6.65%.

The declines in the region followed a poor showing stateside on Monday, following reports that US president Donald Trump had attempted to block a number of Chinese firms from investing in American tech.

Treasury secretary Steve Mnuchin did little to add clarity to the story, initially calling them “false, fake news”, before explaining that any restrictions would apply to “all countries”.

Oil prices were higher, with Brent crude last up 0.89% at $75.40 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate moving up 0.26% to $68.26.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.21% to 6,197.60, while the S&P/NZX 50 was 0.07% lower at 8,989.80.

Both of the down under dollars were weaker against the greenback, with the Aussie last off 0.16% at AUD 1.3508 and the Kiwi retreating 0.39% to NZD 1.4556.