The Tokyo stock exchange's Nikkei 225 index was down 0.2 percent when investors took a break for lunch, while the broader Topix index indicated a plus of 0.1 percent.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng stood at a minus of 0.1 percent at the same time. Shanghai's composite index fluctuated around zero and Shenzhen's equivalent stood at a plus of 0.7 percent.
In South Korea, the Kospi index stood at a minus of 0.3 percent.
President Donald Trump was reported on Wednesday to be on his way to fire the central bank chief Jerome Powell, which made the New York stock exchange fall quickly. The leading indexes recovered to a plus, however, after Trump dismissed the reports.
Trump has several times sharply criticized Powell for not lowering the US interest rate. But Powell has insisted that interest rate decisions should be made by the central bank based on real economic statistics and without political involvement.
