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Tokyo - Tokyo shares dropped 2.1% on Friday morning as a stronger yen dented exporters, following a global equities sell-off driven by fears over the health of the world economy.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange fell 420.59 points to 19 612.93 by the break, while the Topix index of all first-section shares was down 39.87 points, to 1 584.01.
"The overnight weakness in global markets is making people nervous," said Angus Gluskie, managing director at White Funds Management in Sydney.
Investor jitters have spiked on concerns that China's slowdown would drag on global growth, with currency traders moving into the yen, which is seen as a safe-haven in times of turmoil and uncertainty.
The dollar weakened to ¥123.04 ¥123.38 in New York, a negative for shares of Japanese exporters.
Dealers said markets remained under pressure from uncertainty about China after the shock devaluation of the yuan last week added to fears the world's second-biggest economy is slowing more than thought.
Stoking concerns, an independent survey on Friday showed China's manufacturing activity slumped to a 77-month low in August.
Plunging oil prices, which looked set to notch their eighth week of falls, also weighed on investor sentiment.
"The environment surrounding markets has changed with the Chinese economy slowing and commodity prices plunging," Ryuta Otsuka, a strategist at Toyo Securities, told Bloomberg News.
"Investors are unable to have confidence in either the economy or corporate earnings," he added.
The weak start in Tokyo came after the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 2.06% at 16 990.69, its lowest finish this year.
The broad-based S&P 500 dropped 2.11% while the tech-rich Nasdaq slumped 2.82%.
In Tokyo share trading Friday, market heavyweight Fast Retailing, operator of the Uniqlo chain, fell 2.33% to ¥52 780, while mobile carrier SoftBank was down 2.42% to ¥7 457.
Sony dropped 3.23% to ¥3 125.5 and Toyota was 2.39% lower at ¥7 547.
