Tokyo Closes Lower; Asian Markets Mostly Down

Asian markets finished mostly lower in the afternoon session.

The Nikkei 225 Average ended down 0.1% Monday as exporters such as Honda Motor and Kyocera fell on a strong yen. Traders were cautious after weak capital spending data released in the morning fueled concern that rosy gross domestic product growth figures issued in November may be revised down later this week. South Korean and Australian shares also ended lower on concerns of a weaker U.S. economy.

Bucking the trend was the Taiwan market which closed at a six-year high amid investor optimism that the country's asset-rich firms will benefit from the stronger Taiwan dollar.

Most other Asian currencies were steady against the dollar on Monday, with the South Korean won approaching nine-year high as optimism from solid regional economic data was offset by persistent concerns that central banks would intervene to curb currency strength.

Among other Asian market, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index closed slightly higher and stocks in Singapore rose 0.5%.