Japanese shares backpedaled Thursday after a strong rally the previous session, hurt by renewed concerns over the U.S. financial sector and waning sentiment on the domestic economy, AP reported. The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average shed 129.90 points, or 0.98 percent, to 13,124.99 after staging a 2.6 percent advance Wednesday. The broader Topix index lost 1.70 percent to 1,253.89. Leading the losses were banking and insurance issues, which were battered after American International Group Inc. _ the world's largest insurer _ reported it lost more than US$5.36 billion in the April-June quarter as struggling credit markets stripped value from the company's credit default swaps portfolio and other investments. Mizuho Financial Group, Inc. lost 3.45 percent to 476,000 yen, Shinsei Bank shed 6.72 percent to 347 yen, and casualty insurance firm Tokio Marine Holdings, Inc. retreated 3.97 percent to 3,630 yen.
