Japan:Nikkei falls 1%, pressured by stronger yen and Wall St losses

[TOKYO] Japan's Nikkei share average slumped on Tuesday, surrendering the 20,000 level after losses on Wall Street and a stronger yen sapped sentiment.

The Nikkei ended down 1 per cent at 19,979.90, moving away from Friday's high of 20,239.81, which was its loftiest since August 2015.

US stocks edged down on Monday, and a stronger currency also weighed on Japanese shares.

The dollar dropped 0.7 per cent to 109.69 yen, swooning to six-week lows despite wide market expectations that the US Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at its June 13-14 meeting.

The broader Topix shed 0.8 per cent to 1,596.44, while the JPX-Nikkei Index 400 dropped 0.9 per cent to 14,235.25.

REUTERS