Tokyo stocks open sharply lower on global worries

Tokyo - Tokyo stocks opened sharply down on Friday, following Wall Street lower on worries over the diplomatic fallout from the disappearance of a Saudi journalist and a host of other global concerns.

The Nikkei 225 index was off 1.32% or 298.41 points at 22 359.75 in early trade, while the broader Topix index was down 1.11% or 18.93 points at 1 685.71.

The yen firmed against the dollar and the euro as traders sought safe assets, after global stocks fell on a raft of concerns, led by worries over US-Saudi Arabia ties due to journalist Jamal Khashoggi's disappearance.

On top of that, the euro is under pressure "because of uncertainties in Europe" such as Brexit talks and Italy's controversial budget plans, said Kyoko Amemiya, senior market strategist at SBI Securities.

Investors are keenly awaiting the announcement of China's third-quarter GDP growth data later on Friday, and "depending on the figures, share prices may dip further," she said.

The dollar traded at ¥112.20 while the euro was at ¥128.52 in early Asian trade, against ¥112.18 and ¥128.63 in New York, respectively. The dollar-yen rate was ¥112.50 in Tokyo late on Thursday.

China-linked shares were among the losers in Tokyo, with construction machine maker Komatsu dropping 4.0% to ¥3 046 and industrial robot maker Fanuc trading down 1.64% at ¥18 860.

Market heavyweight Fast Retailing, Uniqlo casual wear operator, was down 1.41 percent at 55,040 yen.