Japanese shares slide on caution about U.S. stimulus package

TOKYO, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Japanese shares fell on Tuesday,
tracking a lower close on Wall Street, as investors cautiously
looked to whether U.S. lawmakers could reach an agreement on a
stimulus package against the backdrop of a deadline to reach the
deal approaching.
The benchmark Nikkei share average .N225 fell 0.32% to
23,596.49, while the broader Topix .TOPX lost 0.39% to
1,631.60.
All but three of the 33 sector sub-indexes on the Tokyo
exchange traded lower. Land transport .IRAIL.T , miners
.IMING.T and paper and pulp .IPAPR.T led the declines on the
main bourse.
But losses were limited by a rise in U.S. stock futures and
a weaker yen against the dollar in early Asian trade.
Overnight, Wall Street's main indexes closed lower as U.S.
lawmakers still appeared to struggle to reach an agreement on
the coronavirus stimulus. .N
U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and
Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin "continued to narrow their
differences" in a 53-minute telephone conversation about the
fresh aid package, Pelosi's spokesperson wrote on Twitter.
Pelosi had said she was optimistic that a legislation could
be pushed through before Election Day, but an agreement would
have to come by the end of Tuesday for that to happen.
Japan Exchange Group 8697.T was flat amid reports that the
Financial Services Agency would conduct an on-site investigation
of the Tokyo Stock Exchange and may issue a business improvement
order after a system failure caused a full-day trade suspension
earlier this month. Tokyo Dome Corp 9681.T climbed 2.49% following multiple
media reports that Hong Kong hedge fund Oasis Management had
submitted a request to the company for an extraordinary
shareholders meeting to replace top leaders.
The Mothers Index .MTHR of start-up firm shares bucked the
overall sombre trend and gained 0.49%.