Meanwhile, gold miners were dented as prices of the metal eased from the seven-year highs hit on Monday. The gold sub-index slumped 3.7%, with Saracen Mineral Holdings shedding 7.3% and Newcrest Mining slipping 3.6%.
Heavyweight global miners BHP Group and Rio Tinto Ltd declined 2.1% and 1.8%, respectively.
Oil Search closed 2.3% lower after the company flagged higher spending in 2020 and missed analysts' estimates for annual net profit.
Oil and gas producers Santos Ltd and Woodside Petroleum shed 3% and 2.2%, respectively, as demand concerns lingered even as oil prices stabilized.
Elsewhere, takeover target Caltex Australia closed about 1% lower. The company said it was talking to other suitors, as it tries to wring best value from rival bidders Canada's Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc and Britain's EG Group.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index shed 1.2%, or 137.89 points, to finish the session at 11,719.23.
Shares of Air New Zealand slipped 4.3%, while those of Synlait Milk dropped 3.5%.
Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Afghanistan and Iraq reported their first virus cases, while Italy and South Korea struggled with a jump in the number of coronavirus cases.