Japanese stocks fall on overseas losses

Japanese shares dropped Thursday morning as investor sentiment was hurt by overnight losses on Wall Street and European markets, according to dpa. The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average lost 79.51 points, or 0.78 per cent, to trade at 10,103.06 at the end of the morning session at 11:30 am (0230 GMT). The broader Topix index was down 7.45 points, or 0.86 per cent, at 856.98. Shares in Honda Motor Co fell 2 per cent, Toyota Motor Corp dropped 1.65 per cent and Canon Inc was down 0.63 per cent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.54 per cent Wednesday as energy shares declined due to falling crude oil prices after an increase in supply. On currency markets at 11:30 am in Tokyo, the dollar traded at 82.64-68 yen, down from Wednesday's 5 pm quote of 82.79-80 yen. The euro was quoted at 110.06-12 yen, down from 110.58-62 yen late Wednesday, and at 1.3317-3320 dollars, down from 1.3357-3358 dollars.