ASIA MARKETS: Japan Stocks Log Five-day Losing Streak

By Laura He, MarketWatch

Hong Kong stocks pull back as telecoms weaker

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Tracking substantial losses in the U.S. overnight, Japan stocks on Wednesday logged a five-day losing streak, leading a downward regional trend.

The Nikkei Average Index ended down 1.1%, while the yen (USDJPY) strengthened against the greenback, trading at Yen102.516 from Yen102.608 in the prior session. The broader Topix index finished 1% lower.

Internet and telecoms conglomerate SoftBank Corp. tumbled 3.5%, after its Sprint unit (S) dropped a pursuit of T-Mobile U.S. (TMUS) , according to various media reports.

Other market movers included Sony Corp. , down 2%, IT services provider Fujitsu , off 1.9%, electronics giant Sharp Corp., off 1.6%, and semiconductor company Renesas Electronics Corp. , which lost 1.4%.

In other Asian markets, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index pulled back 0.3%. Telecoms operator China Unicom (Hong Kong) slid 5.3% ahead of its first-half earnings due later this week. Rivals China Telecom Corp. and China Mobile lost 2.1% and 1.3% respectively.

Elsewhere, both Sydney's S&P/ASX 200 and the Shanghai Composite Index inched down 0.1%. Seoul's Kospi Composite Index gave up 0.3%, while Taiwan's Taiex closed flat.

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