Tokyo stocks closed lower Tuesday, as investor moves to lock in gains erased earlier advances that had lifted the Nikkei index to a 34-year intraday high after the Bank of Japan maintained its ultraloose monetary policy.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended down 29.38 points, or 0.08 percent, from Monday at 36,517.57. The broader Topix index finished 2.85 points, or 0.11 percent, lower at 2,542.07.
On the top-tier Prime Market, decliners were led by electric power and gas, land transportation and textile issues.
The U.S. dollar retreated to the upper 147 yen range in Tokyo after climbing to the mid-148 yen level on yen-selling prompted by the BOJ decision to maintain negative interest rates following its policy meeting.
Stocks initially tracked overnight gains on Wall Street and extended advances after the Japanese central bank decided to keep its monetary policy intact as widely expected by the market.
But shares quickly lost steam and dropped into negative territory as investors cashed in on recent gains by the Nikkei benchmark, which had risen by over 1,000 points in the past two trading days.
"Concerns grew that the market was overheating in the short term," said Yutaka Miura, senior technical analyst at Mizuho Securities Co.
Market participants were focusing on remarks by BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda to look for hints on when the bank intends to change its policies as well as his assessment of the impact of the deadly earthquake that struck central Japan on New Year's Day, analysts said.
