Tokyo stocks fall back, hit by selling on rally

Stocks turned lower on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Friday, pressured by selling on a rally after the recent sharp advance. The 225-issue Nikkei average lost 63.02 points, or 0.37 percent, to end at 16,848.03. On Thursday, the key market gauge jumped 529.83 points to a two-week high. The Topix index of all first-section issues finished down 9.95 points, or 0.73 percent, at 1,361.40, after advancing 38.91 points the previous day. Tokyo stocks got off to a weaker start after the Nikkei average shot up more than 1,100 points, or over 7 percent, during the previous three days.