Asian share markets were mixed Monday with Japanese exporters giving up early gains as the yen advanced, while heavyweight Nomura Holdings fell after it announced a fundraising plan to cope with losses. Japan's Nikkei 225 ended down 1.3% to 7,969.03, after rising more than 2% earlier in the day. Taiwan's main index gained 0.5%, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.1% and New Zealand's NZX-50 fell 0.3% as trading resumed after a holiday. Elsewhere, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 0.2%, China's Shanghai Composite added 2% and India's Sensitive Index added 0.9%. In Japan, machinery shares gained after December core machinery orders fell less than expected, with Fanuc gaining 4%. Brokerage Nomura Holdings fell 14% after it said it may raise as much as 300 billion yen ($3.3 billion) as it struggles with volatile markets and the cost of absorbing former Lehman Brothers employees. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is set on Tuesday to detail his recovery plan for the banking sector, and the U.S. Senate geared up for a vote on a revamped $827 billion economic stimulus package. Markets are "slightly softer as traders take account of the fact the U.S. is still stalling on the bailout plan," wrote CMC Markets dealer Matt Buckland in a note. "A degree of profit-taking after last week's solid gains is also perhaps inevitable." South Korea's Kospi erased an early rise to end 0.6% down at 1,202.69, while Singapore's Straits Times Index was recently down 2%. In Australia, Rio Tinto jumped 5.7%, briefly hitting a three-month high, on reports it's considering a possible asset sale to Japan's Mitsui & Co. Other commodity producers rose, with BHP Billiton up 3.4%, helped by stronger base metal prices. Suncorp Metway shares sank more than 25% after it said last week that interim profit could fall as much as 45% on year, that it would slash dividends, and that its chief executive would leave. Insurer Australia Group was down 9.5% after wildfires claimed more than 100 lives in Victoria state at the weekend, the worst bush fires in the nation's history. Financial and technology stocks were mixed in South Korea with Hynix Semiconductor up 0.8% after saying it had developed the world's highest-density memory chip using the thinnest process technology. Ssangyong Motor fell 15% after a Seoul-based court said Friday it had approved a request by the company to enter into receivership. Taiwan technology stocks continued their rally from last week with AU Optronics up 3.4% and Hon Hai Precision up 1.4%. Indonesia shares fell 1.1% with Philippine shares up 0.5%. In currency markets, the U.S. dollar fell to 91.08 yen from 92.42 yen initially in Asia and 92.02 yen late in New York on Friday, with the euro around 117.46 yen, against 119.98 yen earlier in Asia. The euro was still higher against the U.S. dollar, around $1.2895 versus $1.2929 on Friday. March Nymex crude oil futures were up 2 cents at $40.19 a barrel on Globex.

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