According to Yonhap, the Korea Herald and HKET, Asian equities diverged at Tuesday's open as chipmaker strength lifted Seoul while Tokyo and Hong Kong slipped, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street where the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.51% and the Nasdaq Composite eased 0.32% amid elevated oil prices and fading hopes for an Iran deal.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 opened lower, trading at 68,857.46, down 362.79 points or 0.52% as of 01:40 UTC, weighed by chip-related names as Japan's 10-year government bond yield climbed to a three-decade high. Tokyo Electron fell 2.41%, Advantest dropped 2.04% and Sony declined 1.46%.

Seoul's KOSPI led regional gains, opening 2% higher and extending to 7,144.85, up 166.91 points or 2.39% as of 9:15 a.m. local time, driven by chipmakers. Samsung Electronics rose 3.64% and SK hynix jumped 6.38%, while shipping firm HMM surged 9.41%. Carmaker Hyundai Motor slipped 0.77%.

Hong Kong stocks opened softer, with the Hang Seng Index down 84 points at 25,368 and the Hang Seng Tech Index off 0.3% at 4,768. Baidu firmed 1% ahead of results and Zijin Gold International rose 5%, while Xiaomi fell more than 1%. Chip name SMIC added nearly 2%, and jeweller Chow Sang Sang jumped 11% after flagging a profit surge.

Taiwan's TAIEX opened up 65.13 points at 45,922.40, with Nanya Technology hitting a record NT$553 and TSMC opening NT$15 higher at NT$2,415; the index later pared gains to 45,793.13, down 0.14% as of 01:40 UTC.

In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite edged up 6.79 points or 0.17% to 3,989.45 and the Shenzhen Component gained 0.20%, as of 01:40 UTC. Newly listed Pinzhun Laser opened more than 488% higher on its debut, the priciest new share of the year to date.