06:16 AM EDT, 10/22/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Asian stock markets traded mostly lower on Tuesday amid uncertainty over upcoming Japanese and US elections and caution ahead of earnings reports.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 closed down 1.39% to 38,412, after briefly falling by as much as 700 points. Japan's broader Nikkei 500 and the Topix also closed down more than 1%.

Among the Nikkei 225, losers outnumbered gainers 8 to 1. Those losing ground included healthcare company M3, down 4.9% and construction companies Seksui and Kajima, down 2.3% and 2.5% respectively. Among those holding steady or advancing slightly were carmaker Toyota and foodmaker Kikkoman.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Composite held steady, up 0.2%. EV makers including Li Auto and Geely Auto advanced 5% and 7% respectively on a Citigroup report citing promising sales data in the industry. The Hang Seng Tech Index gained 0.7% while the broader Hang Seng index was up 0.1%.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite rose 0.54% to 3,286.

On other regional exchanges, South Korea's KOSPI fell 1.3%; the Taiwan TWSE declined 0.2%; the Australian ASX 200 declined 1.7%; the Singapore Straits Times Index fell 0.8%, and the Thai Set declined 1.5%.

In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was down 0.8%.

In regional business and economy headlines, South Korea's Hyundai reportedly raised $3.3 billion in an Indian IPO that was regarded as the country's biggest ever.

A report by Amer Sports found that Chinese are taking to hiking and camping, giving a boost to outdoor brands like Salomon.

Japan's rising mortgage burdens are lifting debt above income for the first time.

Laos is setting up a bank to bolster gold reserves as a way to prop up its ailing economy.