Tokyo stocks slipped Thursday as investors grew cautious ahead of more earnings reports from major Japanese companies later in the day. The dollar was higher against the Japanese yen and the euro.
The benchmark Nikkei Stock Average of 225 selected issues dipped 13.99 points, or 0.12 percent, to 11,393.15 points to end Thursday's morning trade. The index gained 22.74 points, or 0.20 percent, on Wednesday.
The dollar was trading at 104.09 yen at 11 a.m. Thursday, up 0.38 yen from late Wednesday in Tokyo and above the 103.75 yen it ought in New York later that day.
Tokyo shares started higher after upbeat results from Google Inc. and Boeing Co. lifted Wall Street for a third straight session overnight. But prices fell back as investors grew cautious ahead of more earnings reports from major Japanese companies, including Toyota Motor Corp., later Thursday.
Automakers, including Toyota, Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. fell.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 44.85, or 0.43 percent, at 10,596.79 Wednesday. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 3.78, or 0.32 percent, to 1,193.19.
In Tokyo Thursday morning, the broader TOPIX, the index of all issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's first section, lost 3.37 points, or 0.29 percent, to 1,148.60 points. The TOPIX rose 5.48 points, or 0.48 percent, the day before.
In currency trading, the dollar was stable but little changed against the yen and the euro as investors awaited this weekend's Group of Seven industrialized nations' meeting.
The euro fell to $1.3018 Thursday morning in Tokyo from $1.3086 late Wednesday and to 135.46 yen from 135.50 yen.
The yield on Japan's benchmark 10-year government bond was unchanged from Wednesday's finish of 1.2700 percent, with the price of 101.13 points.