Tokyo shares closed slightly lower Wednesday as selling took the upper hand after recent gains.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average inched down 24.04 points, or 0.14 percent, from Tuesday at 17,383.58.
The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange was down 2.75 points, or 0.20 percent, at 1, 406.40.
Decliners were led by mining, real estate and fishery issues.
The turnover was about 2,299.4 billion yen (about 19.52 billion U.S. dollars).