Japan's Nikkei fell on Thursday as a slide in commodities hurt companies exposed to the industry, while investors were also reluctant to stake out fresh positions ahead of the end of the fiscal year.
The Nikkei share average dropped 0.6 percent to 16,892.33.
Hong Kong shares fell on Thursday as sliding oil prices weighed on energy stocks and as investors booked profits ahead of the long Easter weekend.
The Hang Seng index fell 1.3 percent to 20,345.61 points, while the China Enterprises Index lost 1.9 percent to 8,701.13 points.
The energy sector dropped 2.6 percent, with oil giants Sinopec Corp and PetroChina tumbling 2.6 percent and 4.3 percent, respectively.
An index tracking resources shares also dropped sharply, down nearly 3 percent.
Hong Kong markets will be closed on Good Friday and Easter Monday.
China stocks fell more than 1 percent on Thursday, led by resources shares, after state media reported that 35 domestic brokerages have resumed short-selling business following a long hiatus.
Major indexes had their biggest one-day fall in two weeks, with the blue-chip CSI300 index declining 1.7 percent to 3,181.85 points, and the Shanghai Composite Index sliding 1.6 percent to 2,960.97.
Stocks fell across with board, with energy and raw material shares among the biggest decliners.
Reference: Reuters
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