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Homeasia marketsAsian shares choppy; Nikkei falls 0.6%

Asian shares choppy; Nikkei falls 0.6%

Asian shares were volatile on Wednesday, following negative cues from Wall Street and amid lingering concerns over the global economic recovery.

U.S. stocks eased from record territory on Tuesday as investors weighed a decline in consumer confidence and better-than-expected earnings from home-improvement retailer Home Depot.

The blue-chip Dow shed 0.2 percent, while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 index inched down 0.1 percent.

Tokyo falls 0.6%

Japan's benchmark Nikkei retreated into negative territory, after briefly trading in the green midday on Wednesday. Its dismal showing on Wednesday was a drastic difference from Tuesday's robust session, where Japanese shares surged past the 15,000 mark to hit a four-week closing high.

"For the rest of the week, the Nikkei may see directionless trade and a lack of volume because investors need more catalysts to take positions. The benchmark may stay between 14,500 and 15,000," said Masashi Oda, chief investment officer at Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank to Reuters.

Softbank, which hit its highest level in a month following a report that the company was seeking to buy a stake in a mobile-messaging service under South Korea's Naver on Tuesday, fell over 1 percent. Automaker Toyota Motor skidded 1.3 percent while Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group dunked 1.7 percent.

Panasonic however outperformed the bourse, holding onto a 6 percent gain, after the Nikkei newspaper reported that the firm is inviting a number of Japanese suppliers to join it in an investment plan with Tesla Motor.

(Read more: Will the yuan'sslide zap China's demand for Treasurys?)

Shanghai 0.4% higher

Mainland shares saw choppy trade on Wednesday, amid lingering concerns about its property sector and the Chinese yuan seeing continued weakness.

Property shares rebounded slightly after a two-day losing streak. Vanke and China Merchants Property rose above 1.2 percent. Only Gemdale remained in the red with a drop of 0.2 percent.

Majority of banking stocks were sluggish; Bank of China tanked 1.2 percent while ICBC slipped 1.9 percent.

Raking in gains was Sinopec, which soared 2.5 percent after its chairman Fu Chengyu said the company will soon announce the next stages of its reform plans.

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