The leading stock exchanges in Asia began the middle day of the trading week in different directions.
In Tokyo, the important Nikkei 225 had grown by 0.2 percent around lunchtime, while the broader Topix index increased by 0.4.
It was gloomier in Hong Kong, where the Hang Seng index fell by 0.4 percent. Nor did the Kospi in South Korea show any cheerfulness and decreased by 0.7 percent.
On Shanghai's composite index, the same gloomy pattern was seen as it fell by 0.2 percent, while Shenzhen's composite index went in the opposite direction and rose by 0.8 percent.
