The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended down 229.97 points, or 1.19 percent, from Wednesday at 19,134.70, the lowest since Dec. 30.
The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange finished 14.99 points, or 0.97 percent, lower at 1,535.41.
Decliners were led by pharmaceutical, pulp and paper, and precision instrument issues.
The day’s turnover was about 2,376.1 billion yen (around 20.66 billion U.S. dollars).