Japanese bonds joined a global debt slump as a rush of corporate-debt sales and concerns over developed-world budgets dragged down European fixed-income securities and Treasuries.
Higher yields weighed on equities, pushing Asian shares to their lowest level in three weeks.
Yields on 20-year Japanese government bonds rose to levels last seen in 1999 while those on the 30-year maturity jumped to the highest since their debut.
Longer-dated German bond futures slipped for a fifth straight session. US 30-year bond yields held close to 5% after a spike on Tuesday that weighed on Wall Street.
The yen weakened amid political uncertainty in the country while a gauge of the dollar rose for a second day.
Treasuries slumped Tuesday, tracking declines in longer-maturity European bonds at the start of a month that is historically tough for debt markets.
The vulnerability of global long-dated government debt reflects the accumulation of heavy spending, which requires rising bond sales to finance, and an overall trust deficit in sovereign debt.
