Tokyo stocks close lower on US tech share falls

Tokyo stocks closed lower on Thursday with investors disheartened by falls in US tech shares, while the Bank of Japan's unchanged policy failed to support the market.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 0.67 percent, or 156.16 points, at 23,319.37 at the close, while the broader Topix index ended down 0.36 percent, or 5.95 points, at 1,638.40.

Japanese shares started in negative territory as tech giants took another hiding on Wall Street, which weighed on the market, analysts said.

In addition, "a higher yen against the dollar was disliked by investors who sold major shares", contributing to further falls, Okasan Online Securities chief strategist Yoshihiro Ito said in a commentary.

The dollar fetched 104.99 yen in Asian trade, against 104.92 yen in New York and 105.34 yen in Tokyo late Wednesday.

The Bank of Japan (BoJ) said it would maintain its ultra-loose monetary policy as the virus-hit economy gradually picks up, in line with market expectations.

BoJ governor Haruhiko Kuroda was due to speak after market close on Thursday, one day after new Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga took office and picked his cabinet.

In Tokyo, Hitachi closed down 0.62 percent at 3,682 yen after scrapping its multi-billion-pound nuclear plant project in the UK in face of the deteriorating investment environment.

Sony closed down 0.95 percent at 8,132 yen after it said its PlayStation 5 game console will launch in November with a price tag of $500 for the premium PS5, and $400 for a "digital edition" for games downloaded from the cloud.

Sony's rival Nintendo was down 1.42 percent at 58,980 yen after its president said the company plans to release new Switch games while extending the console's life cycle.

Among other shares, Honda was down 1.50 percent at 2,590 yen and Uniqlo casual wear operator Fast Retailing was off 1.28 percent at 64,670 yen.