Asian stocks stepped back early on Wednesday after a record run on Wall Street showed signs of petering out, while the dollar hovered near a four-month high against a basket of currencies following upbeat U.S. data.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS fell 0.1 percent, putting some distance between a nine-month high struck late last week.
Japan's Nikkei share average broke a seven-day winning streak on Wednesday on profit-taking, while Nintendo Co stumbled after a reported delay for Pokemon GO's introduction in Japan.
The Nikkei dropped 0.3 percent to 16,681.89.
China stocks closed lower on Wednesday as mixed signals from economic data added to investors' uncertainty over prospects for further policy stimulus this year.
The CSI300 index of the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen fell 0.3 percent to 3,237.61 points, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.3 percent to 3,027.90.
Hong Kong shares finished firmer on Wednesday, as investors eyeing dovish signals from central banks in recent weeks continued to bid up stocks.
The Hang Seng index rose 1.0 percent, to 21,882.48, while the China Enterprises Index gained 0.4 percent, to 9,023.11 points.
Reference: Reuters
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