Both up and down on Asian exchanges

The leading stock exchanges in Asia began trading on Wednesday in a state where investors are waiting for new job figures from the US, which will be published later in the week.

In Tokyo, the important Nikkei 225 index fell 1.1% after lunch, while the broader Topix index lost 1.5%.

The Hong Kong stock market went in the opposite direction, with the Hang Seng index rising 0.3%.

The Shanghai composite index, on the other hand, lost 0.3%, while the composite index in Shenzhen remained virtually unchanged.