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| - Tokyo stocks opened lower on Wednesday, tracking falls on Wall Street as investors focused on corporate earnings that have been decimated by the coronavirus pandemic. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 1.11 percent or 226.92 points at 20,139.56 in early trade, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.89 percent or 13.21 points to 1,463.51. "We are seeing Japanese shares falling against the backdrop of declines in the US stocks market," with the Nikkei index's psychologically important 20,000-point level in focus, said Okasan Online Securities. Traders are watching Japanese earnings reports with "uncertainty about the prospects of corporate performances likely to cap the upside" for share prices, the analysts said. The dollar fetched 107.16 yen in early Asian trade, against 107.14 yen in New York late Tuesday. In Tokyo, major shares were lower, with Uniqlo casual wear operator Fast Retailing trading down 2.18 percent at 52,090 yen, and Telecom and investment giant SoftBank Group down 1.89 percent at 4,615 yen. Honda was down 2.12 percent at 2,469.5 yen after it said its full-year net profit had fallen sharply, hit by the virus outbreak. Sony was down 0.64 percent at 7,026 yen ahead of its earnings report due after the market close later in the day. On Wall Street, the Dow ended down 1.9 percent at 23,764.78. kh/ric/jah
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