Tokyo shares closed lower Wednesday as investors sought to lock in recent gains and the yen's slight appreciation against the U.S. dollar is unfavorable to exports.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended down 50.04 points, or 0.26 percent, from Tuesday at 19,444.49.
The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange finished 7.42 points, or 0.48 percent, lower at 1,544.94.
Decliners were led by precision instrument, electric power and gas, and iron and steel issues.
The day's turnover was about 2,419.5 billion yen (around 20.59 billion U.S. dollars).
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