Tokyo shares close lower on profit-taking

TOKYO: Tokyo stocks closed down Wednesday as profit-taking wiped out earlier gains, with investors taking a wait-and-see stance ahead of Joe Biden's inauguration.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 0.38 percent or 110.20 points to 28,523.26, while the broader Topix index declined 0.34 percent or 6.26 points to 1,849.58.

The market opened on a strong footing, following overnight gains on Wall Street as investors hoped for aggressive stimulus spending by the Biden administration in the United States.

After reaching the day's high shortly after the opening bell, the Tokyo market came under selling pressure as investors locked in profit.

"As we waited for the inauguration ceremony of incoming President Biden, investors refrained from making active moves," SMBC Nikko Securities said.

Players also wanted to see decisions later this week by major central banks, including the Bank of Japan and European Central Bank.

Still, the market saw both bargain-hunting as well as profit-taking, analysts said.

"The market fell... but it seems the market is seeming rather more resilient than expected," Okasan Online Securities said.

The dollar stood at 103.73 yen, slightly off from 103.90 yen in New York late Tuesday.

Among major shares, logistics and transport shares fell. Japan Airlines lost 1.77 percent to 1,888 while rival ANA Holdings dropped 3.35 percent to 2,232.5.

Major logistics firm Yamato Holdings fell 1.66 percent to 2,550.

Nintendo gave up 1.73 percent to 64,720. Sony lost 0.14 percent to 10,590.

Textiles firms gained with Toray surging 5.45 percent to 704.9 yen, as did chipmakers like Rohm, which added 1.02 percent to 11,940.