Nikkei Ends Slightly Down

Tokyo stocks closed slightly lower Thursday, as investors moved to take quick profits in response to the overnight fall on Wall Street and the yen’s slight rise against the euro.

The Nikkei Stock Average ended the day down 22.24 points, or 0.24%, at 9,238.10.

Wall Street declined overnight on concerns about the uncertain outlook on financial assistance for Greece. The yen rose slightly against the euro.

Investors looked for quick gains after the Nikkei average jumped 208 points on Wednesday, which marked the biggest climb this year and pushed the index to its highest level since Aug. 5.

The benchmark index remained firm, however, with some blue chips continuing to advance. The gauge briefly topped the 9,300 level in the morning, supported by short-term buying in line with the recent uptrend, and by overseas investors.

The trading value on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange reached 1.38 trillion yen.