ASIA MARKETS: Asia Shares Mixed As Australia Falls From Six-year High

By Daniel Inman

HONG KONG--Australian stocks hit a six-year high early Tuesday before slipping into negative territory in a day of mixed trade in Asia.

In Sydney, the S&P ASX 200 ended down 0.9% at 5486.60. It had risen to a multiyear high of 5554.50 earlier in the session.

There was broad-based selling in Australia, with banks and miners pulling down the market. Westpac Banking Corp. and National Australia Bank both fell after they were downgraded by Citigroup, while Rio Tinto Ltd. and BHP Billiton ended lower after spot iron-ore fell 2.2%.

A disappointing earnings report from retailer Wesfarmers Ltd. also weighed on sentiment in Sydney. The company's shares fell 2% after same-store sales growth, which covers stores open for at least one year, in its Coles food and liquor business slowed in the most recent quarter.

The rest of Asia lacked clear direction. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index bounced back from a one-month low hit Monday and rose 1.5% to 22453.89, while South Korea's Kospi fell 0.2% to 1964.77 and Singapore's Straits Times Index was down 0.2% late in Asia.

With Japan closed for a public holiday, trading was thin across Asia. The dollar (USDJPY) edged higher against the yen to Yen102.63, compared with Yen102.49 late Monday in New York.

More broadly, the region appeared to tread water as markets look to the conclusion of the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy meeting on Wednesday for an update on the central bank's stance on stimulus measures. This will be followed Friday by nonfarm payrolls, a labor report that provides a health check on the world's largest economy.

In Asia, the week's main piece of economic data will be April manufacturing for China on Thursday. China's official purchasing managers index likely ticked up in April, according to economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal.

Investors also are digesting earnings from companies such as Sinopec (SNP) , whose shares edged higher in Hong Kong but underperformed the broader market. The Chinese company reported weaker-than-expected first-quarter earnings because of higher upstream costs and a broadened loss from chemicals.

Samsung Electronics Co. shares fell in Seoul after the company reported a 5.9% increase in first quarter profit. Although the performance of its mobile unit was better than expected, smartphone margins were flat from a year earlier, highlighting the need for the world's largest smartphone maker to keep costs low given uncertainties about demand for its new flagship Galaxy S5.

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