Asian shares mostly declined on Wednesday following a slip on Wall Street that ended an eight-day winning streak, the longest of the year. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 lost 0.8% in morning trading, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.5%, South Korea's Kospi shed 0.1%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng slipped 0.9%, and the Shanghai Composite shed 0.3%.
Japan's Finance Ministry reported a 621 billion yen ($4.3 billion) trade deficit in July due to surging global prices pushing imports higher by nearly 17% from a year ago. Robust imports indicated better consumer spending amid rising wages, with Japan's exports also growing by 10% to destinations like the U.S. and China.
