Tokyo's Nikkei index opens slightly lower

Tokyo - Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei index opened slightly lower on Thursday after falls on Wall Street, with a stable yen offering some support to exporters.

The Nikkei 225 index was down 0.12% or 26.70 points at 22 814.42 in early trade, while the broader Topix index was up 1.14% or 2.48 points at 1 716.35.

The dollar fetched ¥112.63 in early Asian trade against ¥112.59 in New York.

The US Federal Reserve's minutes helped US yields edge up, creating a trend for the yen's decline which "will be a tailwind" for Japanese exporters, Okasan Online Securities said in a commentary.

The US Treasury's decision in a report on Wednesday to avoid calling China a currency manipulator also offered investors some relief, analysts said.

In Tokyo, Takeda Pharmaceutical was up 0.88% at ¥4 702 and game giant Nintendo was up 0.48% at ¥39 960 while market heavyweight and Uniqlo casual wear operator Fast Retailing was down 0.79% at ¥56 180.

In New York, the Dow ended down 0.4% at 25 706.68.