Regional equity markets traded in a narrow range to end mostly down on Tuesday.

in Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng Index ended the day down 53 points, or 0.21 percent, at 25,122.

The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index fell 0.3 percent to end at 9,006 while the Hang Seng Tech Index fell 0.67 percent to end at 5,542.

On the mainland, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index closed down 0.02 percent at 3,727 while the Shenzhen Component Index closed 0.12 percent lower at 11,821.

The combined turnover of these two indexes reached almost 2.59 trillion yuan, down from 2.76 trillion yuan on Monday.

Shares related to robots, diesel generators and liquor led gains, while stocks related to insurance, high-performance plastics and the defense industry were among the biggest decliners.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, lost 0.17 percent to close at 2,601.

In Japan, the Nikkei share average slipped from a record high to end lower as investors weighed Wall Street's muted overnight finish, raising concerns that markets have advanced too far, too fast.

The Nikkei index closed 0.38 percent lower at 43,546 after rising to a record high of 43,876 earlier in the session.

The broader Topix also gave up early gains to end 0.14 percent lower at 3,116. (AP/Xinhua)