06:36 AM EDT, 05/15/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Asian stock markets faded Thursday, as traders weighed foreign exchange rates, awaited fresh catalysts, and booked profits after recent rallies.

Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Tokyo finished in the red, while other regional exchanges were choppy.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 finished off 1% as a stronger yen undercut export issues.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 372.62 to 37,755.51, with losing issues outnumbering gainers 147 to 76.

Leading the upside was materials and electronics firm Taiyo Yuden, up 6.8%, while online retailer Rakuten declined 8.8%, the latter after reporting earnings.

In economic news, the Japan Machine Tool Builders' Association reported that orders for machine tools advanced by 7.7% year-on-year in April, slowing from 11.4% logged in March but still rising for seven months in a row.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index opened evenly but declined through the day, finishing off 0.8% as traders appeared to take profits in a market up 18% from early April lows.

The broad gauge Hang Seng fell 187.49 to 23,453.16, as losing issues outnumbered gainers 63 to 19. The Hang Seng TECH Index lost 1.6% on the day, while the Mainland Properties Index fell 1.8%.

Leading the upside was shipping line Orient Overseas International, gaining 2.9%, while internet giant JD.com declined 4.4%.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite fell 0.7% to 3,380.82.

On the other regional exchanges, the S. Korean KOSPI fell 0.7%; the Taiwan TWSE declined 0.2%; the Australian ASX 200 rose 0.2%; the Singapore Straits Times Index rose 0.5%, and the Thai Set declined 1.8%.

In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was up 1.5%, with analysts crediting strong earnings reports and a pending India-US trade deal.