Tokyo slipped 0.34 percent despite a surging Toyota, Seoul dropped 1.26 percent, Taipei fell 1.22 percent and Singapore was 1.06 percent off.Sydney gained 0.40 percent.The People's Bank of China said Tuesday the last day of the long Lunar New Year holiday it would raise the one-year deposit and lending rates by 25 basis points each, taking them to 3.0 percent and 6.06 percent respectively.
The bank raised rates for the first time in nearly three years in October as part of efforts to rein in inflation and property prices. The move was followed by another rise in late December.Inflation hit 4.6 percent year-on-year in December, down from 5.1 percent in November, which was the fastest rate in more than two years.
And the full-year rate was 3.3 percent, exceeding Beijing's three percent target. Leaders have set the 2011 ceiling at four percent.However, despite Tuesday's losses, market-watchers did not expect the latest move to have a huge impact on markets."The rate hike hit market sentiment, but is unlikely to spark heavy selling on stocks as such tightening moves have been expected for some time," Zhang Gang, an analyst from Central China Securities, told Dow Jones Newswires.
And Okasan Securities strategist Hideyuki Ishiguro said: "It appears that China's rate hike has very little impact on global markets."Asian markets are concerned that a rate rise in China will lead to a slow-down in the economy and in turn have an adverse effect on trade, with damaging knock-on effects for the global economic recovery.
In Tokyo, car giant Toyota surged 4.58 percent after a strong earnings report and news that a US probe found its electronics were not the cause of acceleration problems that led the firm to recall millions of vehicles.The automaker said Tuesday its net profit for the nine months to December nearly quadrupled, and hiked its profit outlook for the year.
Regional investors were given a strong lead by Wall Street, where the Dow finished 0.59 percent up at a fresh two ear high on growing confidence in the strength of the US economic recovery.he index has climbed in 11 of the past 13 sessions due to a series of positive economic and company reports.
Oil prices rose back above $100 a barrel in Asian trade on renewed concerns over the crisis in Egypt, which dealers fear could lead to supply problems through the Suez Canal. Brent North Sea crude for March delivery was up 29 cents at $100.21.ew York's main contract, light sweet crude for March delivery, rose 55 cents to $87.49 per barrel after figures showed US stockpiles were falling.
Prices had eased over the past few days as the protests in Cairo seemed to have simmered down but Tuesday saw the biggest show of defiance against President Hosni Mubarak since the revolt began currency markets the dollar rose to 82.36 yen in early Tokyo trade from 82.31 from New York late Tuesday. The euro rose to $1.3652, compared with $1.3621, and to 112.45 yen from 112.14.
Gold opened at $1,364.00-$1,365.00 an ounce in Hong Kong, up from Tuesday's close of $1,355.70-$1,356.70.n other markets:Manila closed 0.91 percent, or 35.11 points, lower at 3,843.37.ellington gained 0.10 percent, or 3.31 points, to 3,386.48.letcher Building shed 0.9 percent to NZ$8.15, Telecom added 1.4 percent to NZ$2.21 and discount retailer The Warehouse ended down 1.1 percent at NZ$3.59.