TOKYO, Sept 11 ― Tokyo shares opened lower today following slips on Wall Street as investors searched for fresh cues to return to buying.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 0.19 per cent, or 45.10 points, to 23,190.37, while the broader Topix index lost 0.16 per cent, or 2.59 points, to 1,622.27.

"Tokyo shares are expected to have a soft start in early trade after falls of US shares overnight,” Okasan Online Securities said in a note.

"Ahead of a weekend, we expect the market is unlikely to see lots of bargain hunters.”

Investors dumped shares on disappointment after US lawmakers failed to pass a relief package while US jobless claims remained high.

"(US) tech shares, which were going through a brief breather, were hardest hit, with GAFAM and other major shares all falling,” Okasan said, referring to the leading tech giants such as Amazon, Apple, Google-parent Alphabet, Facebook and Microsoft.

Still, technical charts for the Tokyo market suggested massive selloffs were unlikely with the Nikkei enjoying solid support around 23,167, the brokerage said.

But the index was likely to stay within the current range with no cues to encourage further buying, Okasan said.

"Solid resistance is seen around 23,200. The market needs strong cues for it to go a notch further above,” it added. "It may take several more days for the market to emerge out of the current range-bound mood.”

The dollar stood at ¥106.10 (RM4.15), nearly flat from ¥106.13 in New York yesterday.

In Tokyo, a broad range of shares fell.

High-tech investor SoftBank Group lost 1.07 per cent to ¥5,738. Industrial robot maker Fanuc fell 1.44 per cent to ¥20,850.

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group trimmed losses to a fall of 0.18 per cent to ¥436.6.

Toyota fell 0.63 per cent to ¥6,911. Sony was down 0.01 per cent at ¥8,215. Nintendo lost earlier gains and was down 0.10 per cent at ¥58,970. ― AFP