Chinese shares close lower Tuesday

Chinese stocks closed lower on Tuesday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index down 0.62 percent to 3,865.23 points.

The Shenzhen Component Index closed 2.54 percent lower at 12,895.11 points.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, lost 3.99 percent to close at 2,955.98 points Tuesday.

The ChiNext Index, together with the Shenzhen Component Index and other indices, reflects the performance of stocks listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange.

Several members of the National Diet of Japan, along with a large number of residents, attended a rally in Tokyo on Friday night to show opposition to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's erroneous remarks regarding China's Taiwan and her advancement on arms expansion.

At a Diet meeting in early November, Takaichi claimed that the Chinese central authorities' "use of force on Taiwan" could constitute a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan and implied the possibility of armed intervention in the Taiwan Strait, which has drawn strong criticism at home and from abroad.

Local media reported Friday that Japan's draft defense budget was set at a record 9.04 trillion yen (about 58 billion U.S. dollars) for fiscal 2026. The figure exceeds the then record initial budget of 8.7 trillion yen for the current fiscal 2025 starting in April.

Meanwhile, an 18.3 trillion yen supplementary budget enacted last week for the current fiscal year included 1.7 trillion yen for security and diplomacy, allowing Japan to bring defense-related spending to its target of 2 percent of gross domestic product within fiscal 2025, two years ahead of the previous schedule, according to reports.

These developments have triggered strong dissatisfaction at home and from abroad, with officials and citizens demanding that Takaichi step down.

"The budget related to the people's livelihood has not been increased as it should be. However, only the defense expense, the defense budget, has been growing abnormally. I would like to ask: Is this really Okay?" said Tomoko Tamura, member of the House of Representatives.

"At the time when Takaichi took office, I gave a name to her administration -- the 'war-preparing cabinet'. What happened later on is exactly the case. Her war preparation has been advancing at a snowballing pace. Such a prime minister who tramples on the Constitution and on the law, and who doesn't care about the existing position of the government must step down. What do you guys think? A prime minister who doesn't withdraw erroneous remarks must resign," said Mizuho Fukushima, member of the House of Councilors.

Local residents who took part in the rally also expressed strong opposition to the actions of Takaichi to advance the country's arms expansion.

"I think this is an issue of not facing up to historical facts, especially when it comes to possessing weapons of mass destruction. Once they are used, it will cause tremendous destruction. Japan once caused great harm to other Asian peoples by carrying out colonial rule, launching aggression, seizing territories and wreaking havoc. Regarding these historical facts, Japan should conduct full reflection and pass them on correctly. However, Japan has done far too little in this respect," said a rally participant.