Asia-Pacific stocks struggle for direction; investors watch Alibaba shares after massive fine

The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 92.175 following its decline earlier this month from above 92.8.

The Japanese yen traded at 109.71 per dollar, stronger than levels above 110.5 against the greenback seen last week. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7619 following turbulent trade last week that saw it swinging from above $0.765 to around $0.759.

Oil prices were higher in the morning of Asia trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures up 0.51% to $62.37 per barrel. U.S. crude futures gained 0.4% to $59.56 per barrel.