Investing.com – Asian stocks were down on Monday, as investors turned cautious ahead of earnings reports from major U.S. banks due out later in the week, while in Japan exporters declined as the yen stayed near a 15-year high against the U.S. dollar.
During last Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was down 1.04%, South Korea's Kospi Composite tumbled 1.41% and Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index shed 0.02%.
The yen’s ongoing weakness against the U.S. dollar continued to weigh heavily on Japan's exporters, with automakers declining.
Shares in Nissan Motor, which earns more than a third of its sales in North America, fell 0.80%. Meanwhile, shares in Mazda Motor dropped 0.93%, following a report that Ford Motor planned to sell the majority of its 11% stake in the automaker.
But shares in Toyota Motor gained 1.21% after the company said it was considering setting up a new plant in Mexico in 2013 to produce small cars for the North American market.
Other exporters were mixed, with digital camera maker Canon shedding 0.13%, electronic maker Hitachi falling 0.57%, while Sony advanced 1.76%.
In Hong Kong, commodity-linked shares led markets lower as crude oil and metal prices declined.
Meanwhile, in Europe, equity markets opened lower. The EURO STOXX 50 was down 0.37%, France’s CAC 40 shed 0.51%, the FTSE 100 declined 0.38% and Germany's DAX fell 0.30%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to releases official data on TIC long term purchases as well as data on the capacity utilization rate and industrial production.
During last Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was down 1.04%, South Korea's Kospi Composite tumbled 1.41% and Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index shed 0.02%.
The yen’s ongoing weakness against the U.S. dollar continued to weigh heavily on Japan's exporters, with automakers declining.
Shares in Nissan Motor, which earns more than a third of its sales in North America, fell 0.80%. Meanwhile, shares in Mazda Motor dropped 0.93%, following a report that Ford Motor planned to sell the majority of its 11% stake in the automaker.
But shares in Toyota Motor gained 1.21% after the company said it was considering setting up a new plant in Mexico in 2013 to produce small cars for the North American market.
Other exporters were mixed, with digital camera maker Canon shedding 0.13%, electronic maker Hitachi falling 0.57%, while Sony advanced 1.76%.
In Hong Kong, commodity-linked shares led markets lower as crude oil and metal prices declined.
Meanwhile, in Europe, equity markets opened lower. The EURO STOXX 50 was down 0.37%, France’s CAC 40 shed 0.51%, the FTSE 100 declined 0.38% and Germany's DAX fell 0.30%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to releases official data on TIC long term purchases as well as data on the capacity utilization rate and industrial production.