http://fxserver.com/TOKYO (AP) -- Tokyo stocks fell in morning trading Thursday following Wall Street's overnight drop. The dollar gained slightly against the yen.
The benchmark 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average lost 182.54 points, or 1.86 percent, to 9,584.19 at its morning close. It closed down 140.57 points, or 1.41 percent, Wednesday.
The U.S. dollar was trading at 118.82 yen on the Tokyo foreign exchange market at 11 a.m. (0200 GMT) Thursday, up 0.26 yen from late Wednesday in Tokyo, and also above its level of 118.66 yen in late New York trading overnight.
On the stock market, stocks fell as many players stayed on the sidelines ahead of Friday's release of Japan's April-June economic growth data, traders said.
On Wall Street overnight, prices fell for a second straight day as investors locked in profits on negative economic news.
Thursday losers included technology stocks Sony, Nintendo and NEC, as well as automakers Toyota and Honda.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed down 130.32, or 1.5 percent, at 8,694.09 Wednesday in New York. The Nasdaq composite index declined 33.40, or 2.5 percent, to 1,314.38, having fallen 3.2 percent Tuesday, the worst one-day drop in three weeks.
The broader Tokyo Stock Price Index was down 16.45 points, or 1.72 percent, at 937.47 Thursday morning. The TOPIX fell 8.92 points, 0.92 percent, the day before.
In currency trading, the dollar was stable against the yen following through on trends on overseas markets Wednesday.
The euro traded at 116.40 yen Thursday morning in Tokyo, up from 116.30 yen late Wednesday. Against the dollar, the euro was quoted at 97.92 cents Thursday, down from 98.08 cents late Wednesday.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year government bond fell to 1.2100 percent from 1.2350 late Wednesday. Its price rose 0.23 points to 100.80.