06:49 AM EDT, 09/10/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Asian stock markets churned Tuesday as traders awaited clarity on the US inflation front, and weighed a mixed trade report from Beijing.

Hong Kong and Tokyo finished in the red, while Shanghai edged higher. Other regional exchanges were similarly mixed and muted.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 opened evenly, wobbled but finished down 0.2% as traders awaited a key US inflation bulletin, slated for release in Washington on Wednesday.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 56.59 to 36,159.16, as losing issues outnumbered gainers 138 to 86. The index has logged six straight trading days in the red.

Leading the upside was semiconductor manufacturing equipment maker Tokyo Electron, up 3.5%, while drugmaker Daiichi Sankyo declined 8.6% after poor result in a drug trial.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index opened evenly and edged higher, finishing up 0.2%, despite weakness in property shares.

The broad gauge Hang Seng rose 37.13 to 17,234.09, although losing issues outnumbered gainers 33 to 25. The Hang Seng TECH Index gained 0.4% on the day, while the Mainland Properties Index fell 3.5%.

Leading the upside was Li Auto, gaining 6.3%, while Wuxi AppTec lost 10.4% after the US House of Representatives passed a bill that would restrict business with certain China biotech companies.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite rose 0.3% to 2,744.19.

In economic news, mainland China exports rose 8.7% on year in August, but imports increased a tepid 0.5% in the same time frame, the National Bureau of Statistics reported.

On the other regional exchanges, the S. Korean KOSPI fell 0.5%; the Taiwan TWSE declined 0.4%; the Australian ASX 200 added 0.3%; the Singapore Straits Times Index rose 0.5%, and the Thai Set lost 0.2%. In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was up 0.4%.