TOKYO (AP) — Asian stocks sagged Wednesday as pessimism about global growth spread following a decline on Wall Street overnight and a strengthening yen, which dampened prospects for export-oriented Japan.

KEEPING SCORE: The Nikkei 225, the benchmark for the Tokyo Stock Exchange, lost 1.2 percent to close at 15,595.98. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng trimmed 0.3 percent to 23,355.34, while South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.4 percent to 1,965.25. Sydney, Singapore and Taiwan also declined.