TOKYO: Tokyo stocks opened lower on Thursday in cautious trade following a mixed close on Wall Street and ahead of year-end holidays.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 0.37 percent or 106.14 points at 28,800.74 in early trade, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.37 percent or 7.38 points to 1,991.61.

"Ahead of year-end and New Year holidays, the number of market participants is low and trade will likely remain lethargic," Mizuho Securities said.

Tokyo trading will take a break on Friday and Monday, resuming on Tuesday for the first session of 2022.

The dollar fetched 114.94 yen in early Asian trade, against 114.95 yen in New York late Wednesday.

On Wall Street, the Dow and S&P 500 edged to records, extending rallies as markets bet that the highly contagious Omicron variant of Covid-19 will not significantly dent economic growth.

But the tech-rich Nasdaq dipped, showing some signs of fatigue after a post-Christmas "Santa Claus rally".

Tokyo investors are gauging the impact of Omicron on economic recovery while watching the US futures market for cues in a day otherwise short of market-moving events, analysts said.

Among major shares in Tokyo, Toyota was down 0.83 percent at 2,093 yen and Sony Group was off 1.10 percent at 14,420 yen.

Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing was down 1.66 percent at 64,580 yen.