Asian markets mostly retreated on Monday, with traders likely holding their horses ahead of a speech from Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen at Jackson Hole, Wyoming on Friday.
The Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo gained 52.37 points, or 0.3%, to 16,598.19, likely boosted by a weaker yen and anticipation of further monetary policy actions from the Bank of Japan.
The Japanese yen traded relatively weaker against the U.S. dollar at 100.76 as of late afternoon local time, compared with the 99 handle it reached last week.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index regained 60.69 points, or 0.3%, to 22,997.91
Elsewhere, reports out of Japan over the weekend suggested that the Bank of Japan (BOJ) might cut rates further into negative territory at its next meeting in September in a bid to prop up the country's moribund economy.
In an interview with Sankei newspaper, Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said the BOJ's negative rate policy, introduced earlier this year, has not reached its limits, according to a Reuters report of the interview.
Japanese exporters were mixed despite a relatively weaker yen. While Toyota advanced 1.2%, Honda gained 1.2%, and Sony was up 1.4%, shares of Mitsubishi Motors were down 0.6% and Canon shares fell 0.8%
Stateside, Yellen was due to give a speech at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City's Monetary Policy Symposium at Jackson Hole. The annual Fed symposium has sometimes been used by Fed chairs to make important policy pronouncements.
The Australian dollar slipped against the greenback, trading at $0.759 as of late afternoon, with some commentators suggesting the Aussie took a hit after Moody's Investor Service cut its outlook on the country's domestic banks to negative from stable last week.
Major Australian banking stocks closed lower, with Westpac shares down 0.2% and Commonwealth Bank of Australia shares off 0.5%
CHINA
The Shanghai CSI 300 dipped 28.23 points, or 0.8%, to 3,336.79
In company news, China's biggest home builder, China Vanke, said on Sunday its net profit rose 10% in the six months to the end of June. Vanke has been embroiled in a high-profile battle for control of the company.
Investors appeared to cheer the uptick in profit numbers, as Shenzhen-listed Vanke shares were up 0.5%, while the Hong Kong-listed shares added 1%
In other markets
The Taiex Index in Taiwan dropped 52.46 points, or 0.6%, to 8,981.81
In Korea, the Kospi index slid 14.08 points, or 0.7%, to 2,042.16
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index eased 2.83 points, or 0.1%, to 2,841.19
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 added 56.91 points, or 0.8%, to 7,462.16
The ASX 200 went down 11.63 points, or 0.2%, to 5,515.06
