Japan's Nikkei share average fell to a one-week low on Wednesday after US lawmakers called for an impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump, while weak US consumer confidence data heightened worries over the Sino-US trade row.
The benchmark Nikkei average dropped 0.4% to 22,020.15, its lowest close since September 18, while the broader Topix dipped 0.2% to 1,620.08, tracking a dismal Wall Street session.
Both indexes climbed to their highest finish in five-months the previous day.
US shares slipped in volatile trade overnight, giving the S&P 500 its biggest one-day drop in a month, as a push for impeaching Trump gained momentum among Democrats in Congress.
Major Wall Street indexes earlier lost their footing when Trump took a harsh tone about China's trade practices at the United Nations General Assembly, saying he would not accept a "bad deal" in US-China negotiations.
Further pressuring Wall Street was the disappointing consumer confidence data.
On Tokyo's bourse, oil and coal products and machinery were among the worst performing of the 33 subsector indexes, down 1.0% and 1.2%, respectively.
One of the few bright spots was the air transport sector, up 1.1%, with Japan Airlines and ANA Holdings rising 1.2% and 1.0%, respectively.
Oil prices fell on Wednesday for a second day on worries about falling fuel demand after Trump's comments doused optimism over China-US trade talks and reignited concerns on global economic growth.
Other notable movers included Nintendo Co, shedding 4.3% after Bloomberg reported initial domestic shipments of the gaming firm's "Switch Lite" were softer than expected.
Traders said Wednesday's profit-taking came as no surprise as some technical indicators looked overheated.
Indeed, the benchmark Nikkei's 14-day relative strength index (RSI) hit 97.4 the previous day, its highest in nearly two years. An RSI reading above 70 would be considered "overbought."
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