Japan's key Nikkei 225 Stock Average lost more than 2 per cent in Tuesday morning trading after the Dow Jones index hit record low in almost 12 years.
The Nikkei index declined 191.66 points, or 2.6 per cent, to 7,184.5, dpa reported.
The broader Topix index of all first section issues was also down 13.41 points, or 1.82 per cent, at 721.87.
On currency markets at 9 am (0000 GMT), the dollar traded at 94.37-42 yen, up from Monday's 5 pm quote of 93.35-38 yen.
The euro traded at 1.2670-75 dollars, down from late Monday's quote of 1.2955-58 dollars, and at 119.57-63 yen, down from 120.96-121.00 yen.