LOC11:34
08:34 GMT
TOKYO, Feb 12 (KUNA) -- Tokyo stocks nosedived on Friday, with a key index falling to a 16-month low due to the stronger yen and concern over the global economic outlook.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) tumbled 760.78 points, or 4.84 percent, from Wednesday to 14,952.61, the lowest closing level since Oct. 21, 2014. Japanese financial markets were closed on Thursday for national holiday.
The index ended below the psychologically important 15,000 mark for the first time in 16 months.
The broader Tokyo Stock Price Index, which includes all shares on the market's First Section on the TSE, was also down 68.68 points, or 5.43 percent, to 1,196.28, with all of 33 subindexes ending in the negative territory.
The yen's sharp appreciation against the dollar led investors to sell export-oriented issues, as the stronger yen cuts the value of Japanese exporters' profits. In the currency market, at 4:40 p.m. (0740 GMT), the US dollar traded at JPY 112.16-18 against JPY 112.37-47 Thursday in New York. (end)
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