The Japanese Nikkei 225 index had fallen by 0.4 percent at the lunch closing, while the broader Topix index had fallen by 0.2 percent.
Shanghai's composite index and Shenzhen's ditto are both down 0.1 percent.
South Korea's Kospi is backtracking the most of the above, down 1.1 percent.
For Hong Kong's Hang Seng, it looks better with an increase of 0.3 percent.