Tokyo: Stocks close down 1.43% after Swiss drop franc cap

[TOKYO] Tokyo stocks fell 1.43 per cent on Friday as investors moved into the yen following Switzerland's shock decision to remove its currency peg to the euro.

The Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange, which was down nearly 3.0 per cent at one stage, lost 244.54 points to end at 16,864.16.

The Topix index of all first-section shares was down 0.93 per cent, or 12.87 points, at 1,363.73.

AFP