TOKYO, Jan. 29 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks closed essentially flat Monday as early buying on the back of Wall Street's positive lead and upbeat sentiment on earnings was parried by the strength of the yen against the U.S. dollar.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average shed 2.54 points, or 0.01 percent, from Friday to close the day at 23,629.34.
The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, meanwhile, edged up 1.06 points, or 0.06 percent, to finish at 1,880.45.
Tokyo stocks traded higher in the morning on the back of record closes on Wall Street late last week with sentiment also bolstered by solid domestic and overseas corporate earnings, market strategists here said.
But renewed concern the Bank of Japan may start to taper its massive easing measures after remarks by its chief, Haruhiko Kuroda, made in Davos, Switzerland, that the bank is approaching its 2 percent inflation target, triggered yen buying, local brokers said.
A strong yen versus its major counterparts reduces the profit outlooks for Japanese firms with an exposure to overseas markets, impacts yields when repatriated and dents competitiveness.
Oil and coal product, and chemical issues comprised issues that gained, while construction and land transportation issues led those that declined the most by the close of play.
Rising issues beat falling ones by 1,129 to 828 on the First Section, with 102 ending the day unchanged.
On the main section on Monday, 1,326.28 million shares changed hands, dropping from Friday's volume of 1,534.27 million shares.
The turnover on the first trading day of the week came to 2,593.9 billion yen (23.81 billion U.S. dollars).
