Tokyo stocks fell sharply Thursday morning on concern over prolonged U.S. monetary tightening amid rising oil prices, while Japan's benchmark long-term interest rate hit its highest level in about 10 years.
The yield on the 10-year Japanese government bond briefly rose to 0.750 percent, its highest level since September 2013.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average dropped 558.89 points, or 1.73 percent, from Wednesday to 31,813.01. The broader Topix index was down 35.48 points, or 1.49 percent, at 2,344.05.
On the top-tier Prime Market, decliners were led by air transportation, warehousing and harbor transportation, and land transportation issues.
