Dealers said trading was also cautious ahead of key inflation data in the US and a meeting of G7 finance ministers and central bankers this weekend.
The Hang Seng Index closed down 39.24 points at 20,340.97.
SEOUL
Share prices closed 0.32 percent lower but well off their lows as foreign investors continued to build positions in Samsung Electronics.
Samsung said its first quarter operating profit fell 42 percent quarter-on-quarter well below market expectations.
The KOSPI index closed down 4.83 points at 1,520.78.
SHANGHAI
Share prices closed 0.36 percent lower as investors booked profits to snap a nine day winning streak that lifted stocks to repeated record gains.
Dealers said trade was very heavy again running at more than US$30 billion as financial stocks and steelmakers lost ground in a volatile session that saw the key index climb into positive territory before succumbing to selling.
The Shanghai Composite Index closed down 12.76 points at 3,518.27 on record turnover of 166.49 billion yuan (US$21.54 billion).
SYDNEY
Share prices closed down 0.37 percent as investors took profits after the market hit record levels during the week.
Dealers said increased speculation of a rise in official interest rates also weighed on sentiment, they said.
The SP/ASX 200 fell 22.5 points to 6,135.7.
MUMBAI
Share prices rose 2.06 percent as higher-than-expected fourth quarter profits from earnings bellwether Infosys spurred fresh buying.
The SENSEX rose 270.25 points to 13,384.08 as software stocks gained across the board on the back of the Infosys results which kicked off the quarterly earnings season.
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