Japan's Nikkei average closed lower today for a third straight session but it trimmed earlier hefty losses as buyers returned to Sony Corp and some other blue chips, sending them higher.
"Tokyo stocks sagged this morning simply due to a knee-jerk reaction to a fall in U.S. stocks," said Kenichi Hirano, a strategist at Tachibana Securities.
The benchmark Nikkei lost 0.33 per cent to close at 11,281.09, led by domestic-related issues such as brokerages, insurers and miners.
The Nikkei earlier fell as low as 11,071.66, down 2.18 per cent, amid global security fears and following sharp losses on Wall Street.
The broader TOPIX index rose 0.09 per cent to close at 1,132.55, recovering from an earlier low of 1,112.70.
Consumer electronics giant Sony gained 1.67 per cent to 4,250 yen, bouncing back from an earlier low of 4,120 yen. Toyota Motor Corp, Japan's largest auto maker, added 1.9 per cent to 3,760 yen, after losing 3.4 per cent in the past three sessions.
Chips-to-computer conglomerate Fujitsu, which earlier sank as low as 603 yen, closed up 0.82 per cent at 615 yen. During the midday break, Fujitsu said U.S. chip maker Lattice Semiconductor would invest in a new semiconductor factory it is building in western Japan.