SINGAPORE : Asian markets were mixed on Monday as late profit-taking offset a rally on Wall Street that was fuelled by upbeat jobs data out of the United States.
The euro and US dollar eased slightly against the yen after racking up healthy gains in New York on Friday.
Tokyo closed 0.62 percent higher, adding 69.01 points to a 33-month high of 11,260.35, while Seoul slipped 0.23 percent, or 4.58 points, to 1,953.21, and Sydney fell 0.28 percent, or 13.6 points, to 4,907.5.
Hong Kong fell 0.16 percent as dealers cashed in profits after the index spent most of the day in positive territory and around one-and-a-half-year highs.
The Hang Seng Index fell 36.83 points to end at 23,685.01, while Shanghai rose 0.38 percent, or 9.13 points, to 2,428.15.
US traders sent the Dow to a more than five-year high Friday on the back of the latest jobs data.
The labour department report showed employers added 157,000 jobs in January, fewer than expected, and the jobless rate inched up to 7.9 percent.
However, revised data for all of 2012 showed net job growth at an average of 181,000 a month, up from a prior estimate of 153,000.
The Dow rallied 1.08 percent to 14,009.79, above 14,000 points for the first time since October 2007. The index is just shy of the record high 14,164.53 seen on October 9, 2007.
The broad-based S&P 500 added 1.01 percent and the Nasdaq jumped 1.18 percent.
"The economic momentum in the US is quite good," Khiem Do, head of Asian multi-asset at Baring Asset Management in Hong Kong, told Dow Jones Newswires.
"The US is basking in good news at the moment because the debt negotiations have kicked the can down the road," he added, referring to a delay until May to negotiations on raising the country's debt ceiling.
And UniCredit's Harm Bandholz in the United States said the updates to the 2012 data "highlight even more how remarkably resilient the US labor market has been over the last two quarters".
The jobs figures sent the dollar and euro higher against the yen on Friday, and the units dipped on profit-taking Monday in Tokyo forex trade.
The US dollar bought 92.74 yen against 92.80 yen in New York late on Friday, while the euro sat at 126.16 yen and $1.3604, compared with 126.60 yen and $1.3637.
Eyes will turn later in the week to China, which is due to release key data on inflation and trade ahead of the Chinese New Year public holiday.
Australia's central bank will also announce the outcome of its policy setting meeting, with analysts expecting it to keep interest rates on hold.
In other markets:
Taipei rose 0.86 percent, or 67.19 points, to 7,923.16. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. was 1.48 percent higher at Tw$103.0 while Fubon Financial Holding rallied 3.56 percent to Tw$39.3.
Manila rose 1.86 percent, or 117.37 points, to 6,435.98, a new record. Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. added 2.13 percent to 2,880 pesos and Ayala Corp. gained 4.8 percent to 574 pesos.
Wellington ended flat, edging up 0.47 points to 4,246,40. Air New Zealand was up 2.38 percent at NZ$1.29 and Fletcher Building slipped 2.23 percent to NZ$9.19.
- AFP/ch
Asian shares end mixed following late profit-taking
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Asian shares end mixed following late profit-taking
