Asian markets trade mixed after a negative lead from Wall Street

Asian stocks were mostly lower on Thursday following a subdued lead from Wall Street, while the dollar pulled up from near two-week lows and sterling languished under the weight of political fears one week before Britain's election.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dipped 0.2 percent and looked set for its fifth straight session of losses as investors took profits after stocks hit a two-year high last week and as economic and geopolitical concerns continued to weigh on sentiment.

Japan's Nikkei advanced 0.8 percent after data showing recurring first-quarter corporate profits were the highest on record for the January to