Japanese shares fell on Wednesday, after Wall Street declined for a third straight session overnight, with heavyweight technology and energy firms leading the losses.
The Nikkei share average was down 0.55% at 28,039.91 by the midday break, while the broader Topix lost 0.51% to 1,958.41 and the Hang Seng index was down by 0.52 per cent.
US stocks down on rate hike fears
US stocks extended losses for a third straight day, as a rise in job openings fuelled fears that the Federal Reserve has another reason to maintain its aggressive interest rate hike path to combat inflation. The Dow Jones was down 0.96 per cent to close at 31,790.87 yesterday and the Nasdaq has shed 1.12 per cent to end at 11,883.14.
"Japanese equities tracked Wall Street's third-straight losing session, but gains in US futures limited the decline," said Maki Sawada, a strategist at Nomura Securities.
"The impact of a better-than-expected factory output data was limited."
Data showed Japan's factories extended expansion in output to a second month in July, as motor vehicle production improved, marking a positive start to the third quarter for manufacturers and broader economic activity.
Chip-making equipment maker Tokyo Electron lost 0.41 per cent and silicon wafer maker Shin-Etsu Chemical slipped 1.33 per cent and a robot maker Fanuc lost 0.62 per cent.
Energy-related shares traded lower after oil prices dropped 5 per cent on Tuesday, before recouping some losses in Asian trading hours on Wednesday.
Oil explorers were the top losers among Tokyo Stock Exchange's 33 industry sub-indexes, with a 3.43 per cent drop, followed refiners, which lost 2.85 per cent.
Explorer Inpex fell 3.73 per cent and was the top loser on the Nikkei, followed by refiner Idemitsu Kosan which fell 3.2 per cent.
Transport shares led gains among the industry groups, with airlines rising 3.14 per cent and railways gaining 1.14 per cent
ANA Holdings jumped 2.94 per cent.
There were 67 advancers on the Nikkei index, against 155 decliners.