TOKYO, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks closed marginally lower Thursday as the yen's appreciation against the U.S. dollar dented investor sentiment and weighed on exporter issues and the broader market.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average lost 26.65 points, or 0.14 percent, from Wednesday to close the day at 19,702.63.
The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, meanwhile, finished 1.18 points, or 0.07 percent, lower at 1,614.82.
Mining, food and insurance-linked stocks comprised those that declined the most by the close of play, and rising issues outpaced falling ones by 1,098 to 802 on the First Section.
Brokers here said that primarily the yen's comparative firmness against the U.S. dollar was the overarching reason for a lack of investor appetite Thursday, which is being perpetuated by concerns about the future course of the U.S. administration under President Donald Trump.
Some shares, however, remained underpinned by solid corporate earnings for the quarter, and strong performances by the U.S. Dow, Nasdaq and S&P overnight also added support.
On the main section on Thursday, 1,436.19 million shares changed hands, rising slightly from Wednesday's volume of 1,435.39 million shares.
The turnover on the penultimate trading day of the week totaled 1,806.0 billion yen (16.42 billion U.S. dollars).
