TOKYO (dpa-AFX) - The Japanese stock market is declining in volatile trade, with the weak cues overnight from U.S. and European markets as well as a stronger yen weighing on investor sentiment.
In late-morning trades, the benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is declining 130.75 points or 0.69 percent to 18,682.78, off a low of 18,650.33 earlier.
The major exporters are mostly lower as the yen strengthened. Canon is declining 0.6 percent, while Sony and Panasonic are losing almost 2 percent each.
The Nikkei business daily reported that Toshiba is considering spinning off its semiconductor operations and selling a partial stake in the unit to Western Digital. Shares of Toshiba are advancing almost 2 percent each.
Among the major automakers, Toyota is down 0.7 percent and Honda is declining 0.3 percent.
In the banking sector, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is lower by more than 2 percent. Fast Retailing is adding 0.5 percent.
In the oil space, Inpex is adding 0.3 percent and JX Holdings is advancing almost 1 percent after crude oil prices edged higher overnight.
Among the other major gainers, Nippon Suisan Kaisha is rising 3 percent and Konami Holdings is advancing more than 2 percent.
On the flip side, Concordia Financial is losing more than 4 percent, while Sumitomo Mitsui Trust and Rakuten are down almost 3 percent each.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar traded in the upper 112 yen-range on Wednesday.
On Wall Street, stocks closed lower on Wednesday after the long holiday weekend following British Prime Minister Theresa May's 'Brexit' speech in which she said the U.K. will not seek to 'hold on to bits of EU membership.' May also said Britain will not seek to remain in the single market, as it would mean not leaving the EU at all.
The Dow fell 58.96 points or 0.3 percent to 19,826.77, the Nasdaq slid 35.39 points or 0.6 percent to 5,538.73 and the S&P 500 dipped 6.75 points or 0.3 percent to 2,267.89.
The major European markets also moved lower on Tuesday. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index tumbled by 1.5 percent, the French CAC 40 Index fell by 0.5 percent and the German DAX Index edged down by 0.1 percent.
Crude oil futures edged higher Tuesday after being propped up by a weaker U.S. dollar. WTI oil added $0.11 to close at $52.48 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX