Tokyo stocks open lower on U.S. Dow fall, Middle East crisis

Tokyo stocks opened lower Monday, pressured by a fall in the U.S. Dow Jones index and concerns about global economic instability caused by an intensification of the Israel-Hamas war over the weekend.

In the first 15 minutes of trading, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average fell 281.79 points, or 0.91 percent, from Friday to 30,709.90. The broader Topix index was down 17.45 points, or 0.77 percent, at 2,237.20.

On the top-tier Prime Market, decliners were led by transportation equipment, rubber product and pharmaceutical issues.

At 9 a.m., U.S. the dollar fetched 149.73-74 yen compared with 149.60...