Asian equity indices are exhibiting mixed trade in early deals on Tuesday, following the overnight weak close on Wall Street and falling commodity prices. On the regional front, the Japanese stock market surged despite the yen strengthened as investors sought safe haven assets amid a continuing selloff in crude oil. In economic news, the manufacturing sector in Japan continued to expand at an accelerated pace in December, the latest flash purchasing managers' index from Markit Economics and the Japan Materials Management Association revealed on Tuesday. Among other markets in the Asia-Pacific region, Singapore, South Korea, and Malaysia are notably lower. Hong Kong is down marginally, while Shanghai, Indonesia and Taiwan are trading higher.
Nikkei 225 gained 114.18 points or 0.66% to 17,371.58, Jakarta Composite spurted by 7.74 points or 0.15% to 5,160.43, Shanghai Composite soared 13.73 points or 0.47% to 2,939.47 and Taiwan Weighted was up by 2.57 points or 0.03% to 8,988.20.
On the flip side, Hang Seng contracted by 63.34 points or 0.27% to 23,249.20, KOSPI Index slipped 13.38 points or 0.70% to 1,906.98, Straits Times dropped 58.29 points or 1.77% to 3,235.85 and FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI was down by 7.16 points or 0.42% to 1,690.15.