TOKYO, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei average fell 2.3 percent on Monday to mark a three-week closing low, with exporters hit by a stronger yen and weak consumer spending data that sparked a broad Wall Street sell-off.
But shares of Aiful Corp and other Japanese consumer lenders soared after a source said the government may ease regulations that have crippled the industry and raised hurdles for small businesses to get loans.
The benchmark Nikkei lost 231.79 points to 9,802.95 after earlier falling as much as 3 percent to 9,736.14. The broader Topix lost 1.6 percent to 880.54. (Reporting by Elaine Lies)