Tokyo stocks closed down 2.17 percent

Tokyo stocks closed down 2.17 percent

Tokyo stocks closed 2.17 percent lower on Wednesday , dragged down by a strong yen and profit-taking after Nikkei hit a six- year approach .

The main index fell 341.72 points to 15,407.94 , while the Topix index of all main board shares fell 1.71 percent or 21.55 points to 1240.99 .

The dollar bought 102.56 yen in afternoon trade , little changed from 102.48 yen in New York on Tuesday , but fell away from 103.25 yen in Asia .

A stronger yen negative for Japanese exporters because it erodes their competitiveness abroad and reducing their profits when repatriated .

Tokyo stock decline accelerated as investors looking for an opportunity to adjust their positions supported by the rise recently , but the outlook for Japanese stocks remain optimistic , Takuya Takahashi , senior strategist at Daiwa Securities said .

" Stocks have surged in recent weeks , and today was a very good day to lock in profits , " he added .

Investors are paying close attention to a series of U.S. data that could provide clues about when the Federal Reserve will reduce its stimulus program .

ADP report on private sector job creation , service sector data from the Institute for Supply Management ( ISM ) and the Federal Reserve's Beige Book report on economic conditions will all be released on Wednesday .

Positive number is likely to increase speculation that the Federal Reserve will begin withdrawing its monetary easing scheme after its policy meeting in mid-December .

" Investors are now worried that the U.S. jobs data stronger than expected December to early can cause withdrawal of the Federal Reserve's monetary easing , " said Kenichi Hirano , operating officer at Tachibana Securities .

The stimulus has been recognized pushed global equity markets .

Seven & I Holdings fell 0.40 percent to 3,750 yen after the 7-Eleven store operator said it bought 49.9 per cent of business luxury retailer Barneys New York in Japan worth 6.0 billion yen .

Sony fell 3.40 percent to 1,845 yen . Leading business daily Nikkei said on Wednesday that the company is considering to buy a chip fabrication plant of Renesas Electronics Japan for 10 billion yen .

Wall Street fell for a second day in a row on Tuesday, as speculation over Fed stimulus . The Dow fell 0.59 percent , AFP reported .