Major markets in Asia were mostly down on Friday, with the Japanese market falling behind its regional peers.

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The Japanese benchmark Nikkei 225 index shed 2.17 percent in morning trade, with Trend Micro being the biggest loser, shedding 13.40 percent. Overnight, the security software maker announced its fourth quarter earnings result and consolidated revenue for fiscal year 2015, ending December 31.

For the fiscal year from January 1, 2015 through December 31, 2015, the company's net income was 21.43 billion yen (USD 189 million), down 3.9 percent on-year.

Across the Korean Strait, the Kospi was flat while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index slipped 0.62 percent.

Down Under, the S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.63 percent, dragged by the energy and financials sectors, both down 3.24 and 0.26 percent, respectively.

Chinese markets started the day lower as well, with the Shanghai composite down 0.38 percent while the Shenzhen composite fell 0.20 percent.

Overnight in the US, major indexes closed down. The Dow Jones industrial average closed down 40.40 points, or 0.25 percent, at 16,413.43. The S&P 500 was down 8.99 points, or 0.47 percent, at 1,917.83 while the Nasdaq composite slipped 46.53 points, or 1.03 percent, at 4,487.54.

Tom White, head trader and chief market strategist at Red Option Advisors, told CNBC's "Squawk Box" that movements on Wall Street overnight were also partly due to consolidation in the overall market, following the rapid movements in equities over the last month and a half.

"What we're seeing here is people taking a break from these massive swings we have had recently," he said. He added that it's likely that in the month leading up to the US Federal Reserve's meeting in March, there will be some range-bound trading unless a new catalyst emerges to move markets such as another sharp dip in oil prices.

Evan Lucas, market strategist at IG, said in a morning note there were some upsides in overnight trade.

"The US was unable to have four consecutive 1

In Europe, Lucas said the bank 'capitulation' trade was closing as "markets respond to the fact money markets and TLTRO

During Asian hours, oil prices were down more than 1 percent. US crude fell 1.01 percent at USD 30.46 a barrel while the global benchmark Brent was lower by 1.17 percent at USD 33.88 a barrel as of 10 a.m. HK/SIN time.

Energy plays were mostly lower across the board, with Santos shedding 4.24 percent, Woodside Petroleum down 2.43 percent, and Inpex dropping 9.52 percent.

Mainland oil producers were mixed with China Oilfield down 0.76 percent and Petrochina gaining 0.13 percent.

Oil prices were mixed overnight after government data showed a rise in US crude stockpiles, contradicting an earlier industry report that said inventories fell by 3.3 million barrels in the week to Feb. 12.

The Energy Information Administration reported crude inventories rose by 2.1 million barrels in the last week.

There are no major economic data due today.

First Published:Feb 19, 2016 7:58 AM IST