TOKYO: Tokyo stocks opened lower on Wednesday, extending falls on Wall Street on worries about the worsening toll of the Russian attack on Ukraine.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 1.23 percent or 329.94 points at 26,514.78 in early trade, while the broader Topix index fell 1.20 percent or 22.72 points to 1,874.45.
"The Japanese market is starting with falls following losses in US shares" that dipped on worries over Russia's invasion of Ukraine and an ensuing surge in the price of oil and other commodities, senior market analyst Toshiyuki Kanayama of Monex said in a note.
The dollar fetched 114.80 yen in early Asian trade, against 114.90 yen in New York late Tuesday.
In Tokyo, Toyota dropped 2.74 percent to 2,074.5 yen after it said it was resuming operation of its domestic plants which had been forced to halt for a day after a cyberattack against one of its parts suppliers.
Toshiba was down 2.69 percent at 4,559 yen after its CEO resigned, adding fresh uncertainty weeks before a key shareholder meeting on a plan to spin off the Japanese conglomerate's devices unit.
Sony was down 1.27 percent at 11,625 yen, airline ANA Holdings was off 2.87 percent at 2,416.5 yen, and chip testing equipment maker Advantest was off 1.63 percent at 9,030 yen.