Nikkei Falls to More Than 3-Week Lows

Japan's Nikkei share average tumbled on Wednesday to its lowest close since late February, taking its cue from a sell-off on Wall Street and a strengthening of the perceived safe-haven yen.

The Nikkei ended down 2.1 percent at 19,041.38, plumbing its lowest levels since Feb. 27.

The U.S. dollar wallowed below the 112-yen level in troughs not seen since November, after Wall Street tumbled on Tuesday as investors' fears grew that President Donald Trump might have trouble delivering his promised tax cuts that helped propel U.S. shares to record highs in recent months.

Banking and securities shares took a significant hit on the market downturn, with the Tokyo Stock Exchange's bank subindex shedding 3.2 percent and the securities subindex dropping 3.8 percent.

The broader Topix slipped 2.1 percent to 1,530.20, while the JPX-Nikkei Index 400 finished 2.2 percent lower at 13,679.58.

(Reporting by Tokyo markets team; Editing by Richard Borsuk)