The yen continued to face pressure near a 32-year low in the lower 150 range versus the U.S. dollar Friday morning in Tokyo as hawkish remarks from a Federal Reserve official fueled prospects of a further widening of the U.S.-Japan interest rate gap.
Tokyo stocks were modestly lower in the morning, weighed down by concerns over a slowdown in the United States, the world's largest economy, as a result of higher interest rates.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average fell 55.37 points, or 0.21 percent, from Thursday to 26,951.59. The broader Topix index was down 6.97 points, or 0.37 percent, at 1,888.44.
On the top-tier Prime Market, decliners were led by land transportation, air transportation and pharmaceutical issues.
