Investing.com - Shares in Asia trended weaker on Tuesday with regional sentiment cautious and linked to events in the U.S. on issues related to trade and tax policies from President Donald Trump that could take months to gain clarity on.
Japan's Nikkei 225 lost 0.88% on the back of continued yen strength.
Toyota Motor shares were down 2.4%, its lowest since November last year, after the automaker raise its operating profit forecast short of the market expectation, Reuters reported.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.37%, weighed by its financials component which was down 0.9 percent, and its energy component, which fell 0.52%. The benchmark index's gold sub-index outperformed, up 3.3% as gold prices surge.
The Reserve Bank of Australia held steady as expected at a record low 1.5%
In China, the Shanghai composite dipped 0.02%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 0.1%, paring back yesterday's gains of more than 0.9%.
U.S. stocks were lower after the close on Monday, as losses in the Oil & Gas, Telecoms and Financials sectors led shares lower.
At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.09%, while the S&P 500 index fell 0.21%, and the NASDAQ Composite index fell 0.06%.