Tokyo stocks open lower on falls in US indices

Tokyo, Japan | Tokyo stocks opened lower on Friday, with investors disheartened by falls in key US indices as markets weighed the impact from the spike in coronavirus cases in many US states.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 0.07 percent or 15.68 points at 22,513.61 in early trade, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.37 percent or 5.73 points to 1,551.51.

"Japanese shares are seen dominated by sell orders in early trade following a fall in the Dow in New York," Okasan Online Securities said in a commentary.

The dollar fetched 107.22 yen in early Asian trade, against 107.17 yen in New York.

In Tokyo, banks were among losers, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial trading down 1.61 percent at 410.3 yen and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial down 0.83 percent at 2,990 yen.

Uniqlo casual wear operator Fast Retailing dropped 3.77 percent to 60,010 yen after it reported plunging profits and lowered its annual profit outlook.

The firm now expects annual net profit to August of 85 billion yen ($792 million), down from an earlier projection of 100 billion yen announced in April, and nearly a half of what it earned in the previous year, it said after market close Thursday.

On Wall Street, the tech-rich Nasdaq finished at another record Thursday, but the Dow and S&P 500 retreated as markets weigh the economic toll from the spike in coronavirus cases in many US states. The Dow ended down 1.4 percent at 25,706.09.