ASIA STOCKS closed lower

Asian stock markets were mostly lower Thursday after Wall Street suffered its longest losing streak since December. 

Chinese stocks pulled lower, with caution ahead of next week's holiday closure. The Shanghai Composite fell 0.8%. 

Lower were shares of Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd., down 1.1% after a breakdown in talks with ecommerce company Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. about listing its initial public offering in Hong Kong. 

Financial and property shares also struggled early in the session. 

Shares of Hong Kong retail middleman Li & Fung Ltd. slumped more then 3.0% to six-week low. The stock was the biggest decliner on Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index, which fell 0.6%. 

Stocks in Tokyo recouped early losses as the yen snapped a four-day gain versus the dollar amid speculation Japan’s government will study a corporate tax cut and advise public pension funds to raise allocations of risk assets. 

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will announce an economic stimulus package on Oct. 1 at the same time as his decision on whether to raise the country’s sales tax, ruling Liberal Democratic Party tax panel chief Takeshi Noda told reporters today. 

Takatoshi Ito, who leads the panel, said in an interview this week that the group will issue its first report in November and that there “was a consensus” to reduce government bonds in the fund’s portfolio. 

The S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.2%. 

Australia’s heavily weighted bank shares traded broadly in the red. National Australia Bank Ltd. fell 0.9% and Westpac Banking Corp. shed 0.5%.

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