Asian stocks ended mostly lower on Tuesday, with worries about surging coronavirus cases in the U.S. and rising tension between Washington and Beijing keeping investors nervous. Brexit talks and U.S. stimulus negotiations also remained on investors' radar.
Chinese shares finished lower on worries that U.S. sanctions could be extended to banks. The benchmark Shanghai Composite index ended down 6.43 points, or 0.19 percent, at 3,410.18, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 202.29 points, or 0.76 percent, to 26,304.56.
In economic news, China's foreign exchange reserves increased to its highest level in more than four years in November, data from the People's Bank of China showed. Forex reserves rose about $50.5 billion to $3.178 trillion at the end of November. This was the highest level since August 2016.
Japanese shares ended lower for a third straight session despite upbeat Q3 GDP data and the announcement of a stimulus package of more than $700 billion.
The Nikkei average dropped 80.36 points, or 0.30 percent, to 26,467.08, while the broader Topix index closed 0.11 percent lower at 1,758.81, after having hit its lowest level since Nov. 20 earlier in the session.
Drug makers paced the decliners, with Daiichi Sankyo and Astellas Pharma falling 3.2 percent and 2 percent, respectively.
Hydrogen product maker Iwatani soared 10.3 percent on a Nikkei report that Japan aims to make hydrogen a power source viable enough to produce the output of more than 30 nuclear reactors by 2030. Sekisui House surged 4.3 percent after its earnings came in better than expected.
Japan's gross domestic product surged an annualized 22.9 percent in the third quarter of 2020, the Cabinet Office said. That beat expectations for an increase of 21.5 percent following the 28.8 percent plunge in the previous three months.
On a quarterly basis, GDP was up 5.0 percent - matching forecasts following the 8.2 percent decline in the three months prior.
Investors also ignored positive household spending, current account and bank lending data.
Australian markets ended slightly higher as gold miners surged, offsetting losses in the energy sector. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index inched up 12.70 points, or 0.19 percent, to 6,687.70, while the broader All Ordinaries index ended up 13.30 points, or 0.19 percent, at 6,922.20.
Gold Miner Evolution rallied 2.4 percent, Newcrest advanced 1.9 percent and Norther Star Resources climbed 2 percent as gold prices rose on expectations of fresh fiscal stimulus in the United States.
Santos, Oil Search and Origin Energy lost about 2 percent as oil added to losses from the previous session on worries over surging Covid-19 cases and heightened tensions between the United States and China. Whitehaven Coal shares slumped 6.2 percent.
Link Administration Holdings surged 13.7 percent after it received a higher A$3.02 billion ($2.24 billion) buyout proposal from SS&C Technologies Holdings.
In economic news, reports on housing sector and business confidence painted a positive picture of the economy.
Seoul stocks tumbled to snap a five-session winning streak on concerns over the new coronavirus resurgence both at home and abroad.
The benchmark Kospi fell 44.51 points, or 1.62 percent, to 2,700.93 as the country's daily new Covid-19 cases continued to hover near the 600-mark and the health minister warned the capital area is now a Covid-19 war zone.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics lost 1.7 percent, No. 2 chipmaker SK Hynix gave up 2.5 percent and Hyundai Motor, the country's largest carmaker, declined 3.6 percent.
New Zealand shares eked out modest gains, with the benchmark NZX-50 index rising 63.57 points, or half a percent, to 12,719.59. PGG Wrightson shares soared 10.8 percent after the agricultural services firm lifted its profit guidance for the second time in less than two months.
U.S. stocks ended mixed overnight as a surge in Covid-19 cases led to renewed lockdown orders in California and traders waited for further developments regarding a potential stimulus bill.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose half a percent to hit a fresh record closing high, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped half a percent and the S&P 500 eased 0.2 percent.
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