Tokyo stocks were lower Monday morning, weighed down by moves to lock in gains amid a lack of fresh trading cues after the Nikkei index notched all-time highs late last week.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average fell 267.19 points, or 0.65 percent, from Friday to 40,621.24. The broader Topix index was down 22.44 points, or 0.80 percent, at 2,790.78.
The U.S. dollar fell slightly to the lower 151 yen range in Tokyo on wariness over a yen-buying market intervention by Japanese authorities after top currency diplomat Masato Kanda reiterated Monday morning that appropriate action would be taken to curb excessive fluctuations.
At noon, the dollar fetched 151.10-15 yen compared with 151.44-54 yen in New York and 151.39-41 yen in Tokyo at 5 p.m. Friday.
The euro was quoted at $1.0821-0822 and 163.51-57 yen against $1.0803-0813 and 163.64-74 yen in New York, and $1.0824-0825 and 163.87-91 yen in Tokyo late Friday afternoon.
Tokyo stocks were lower from the outset, as a wide range of issues were sold following the recent rally that saw the Nikkei index gain over 2,100 points over the previous four trading days.
Sentiment was also dented by the lackluster performance of Wall Street late last week, although the market was supported by some tech issues that tracked gains by their U.S. counterparts, including chip giant Nvidia Corp., analysts said.
