TOKYO (dpa-AFX) - The Japanese stock market is losing on Wednesday after Wall Street extended a sell-off overnight amid mounting worries about global economic growth.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is losing 152.31 points or 0.71 percent to 21,430.81, after touching a low of 21,243.38 in early trades. Japanese shares hit a three-week low on Tuesday.
Nissan Motor's shares are adding almost 1 percent after recent steep losses following the arrest of its chairman Carlos Ghosn. Mitsubishi Motors' shares are up 0.3 percent after the company said it will maintain its alliance with Nissan Motor.
Among the other major automakers, Toyota and Honda are losing more than 1 percent each.
The major exporters are losing despite a weaker yen. Mitsubishi Electric is down almost 4 percent and Sony is declining 1 percent. Panasonic and Canon are lower by more than 1 percent each.
In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is lower by 1 percent and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is down almost 1 percent.
In the oil space, Inpex is losing 4 percent and Japan Petroleum is declining almost 2 percent after crude oil prices fell more than 6 percent overnight.
Bucking the trend, tech stocks are rebounding. Advantest is gaining almost 5 percent and Tokyo Electron is rising more than 4 percent. SoftBank's shares are up 0.6 percent after the company said it will invest $2 billion in South Korean online retailer Coupang.
Takeda Pharamaceutical's shares are losing more than 3 percent despite news that the company cleared the last regulatory hurdle for its $62 billion acquisition of Shire plc with the approval by the European Union.
Among the other major gainers, Screen Holdings is rising more than 3 percent and Mineabea Mitsumi is advancing almost 3 percent.
On the flip side, Takashimaya Co. is falling more than 17 percent and Mitsubishi Electric is losing almost 5 percent. Ebara Corp. and Toyota Tsusho are declining more than 4 percent each.
On the economic front, Japan will see September results for its all industry activity index as well as October figures for supermarket and department store sales today.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the upper 112 yen-range on Wednesday.
On Wall Street, stocks extended their sell-off on Tuesday, partly reflecting a negative reaction to the latest batch of earnings news from companies such as Target and a continued decline by shares of Apple. Department store operator Kohl's and Victoria's Secret parent L Brands also posted steep losses after reporting their quarterly results.
The Dow plunged 551.80 points or 2.2 percent to 24,465.64, the Nasdaq tumbled 119.65 points or 1.7 percent to 6,908.82 and the S&P 500 slumped 48.84 points or 1.8 percent to 2,641.89.
The major European markets also moved to the downside on Wednesday. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index slid by 0.8 percent, the French CAC 40 Index slumped by 1.2 percent and the German DAX Index tumbled by 1.6 percent.
Crude oil prices plunged sharply on Tuesday as rising concerns about global economic outlook outweighed optimism about production cuts by OPEC and allies. WTI crude for January delivery plunged $3.77 or 6.6 percent to close at $53.43 a barrel, its lowest closing level in a year.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX