This Oct. 1, 2020 file photo shows the Tokyo Stock Exchange. (Mainichi)

       TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Tokyo stocks ended lower Friday, with the Nikkei index falling to its lowest level since late December, as automobile shares dropped on Toyota Motor's plan to slash global production and record-high COVID-19 cases in Japan clouded investor sentiment.

       The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended down 267.92 points, or 0.98 percent, from Thursday at 27,013.25. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange finished 16.51 points, or 0.87 percent, lower at 1,880.68.

       Decliners were led by marine transportation, transportation equipment, and nonferrous metal issues.

       The U.S. dollar stayed in the upper 109 yen range as investors bought the perceived safe-haven yen amid a resurgence of coronavirus cases across the globe, dealers said.

       At 5 p.m., the dollar fetched 109.61-63 yen compared with 109.71-81 yen in New York and 109.77-79 yen in Tokyo at 5 p.m. Thursday.

       The euro was quoted at $1.1680-1681 and 128.03-07 yen against $1.1672-1682 and 128.13-23 yen in New York and $1.1682-1684 and 128.24-28 yen in Tokyo late Thursday afternoon.

       The 10-year Japanese government bond yield dipped 0.005 percentage point from Thursday's close to 0.005 percent, with investors buying the safe-haven debt as concerns were raised over the alarming rise in COVID-19 infections in the country, dealers said. Bond yields move inversely to prices.

       Stocks fluctuated in the morning before extending losses later in the day amid a decline on the Asian markets, with the Nikkei briefly falling below the 27,000 mark to end at the lowest level since Dec. 28. The lowest closing level for 2021 was 27,055.94 logged on Jan. 6.

       "The news (on Toyota Motor) came as a shock to the market as the firm had reported robust earnings for the April-June quarter" earlier this month, said Koichi Fujishiro, a senior economist at the Dai-ichi Life Research Institute.

       The automaker said Thursday it would cut global production by some 40 percent in September compared to its initial plan, due to a semiconductor shortage and the spread of COVID-19 in Southeast Asia.

       Meanwhile, the COVID-19 surge across Japan continued to weigh on the market, with the expansion of the state of emergency to seven more prefectures on Friday expected to have a limited effect on people's movements, Fujishiro added.

       On the First Section, declining issues outnumbered advancers 1,411 to 693, while 85 ended unchanged.

       Toyota Motor continued its decline from the previous day, dropping 380 yen, or 4.1 percent, to 8,915 yen. Its suppliers Denso plunged 651 yen, or 8.8 percent, to 6,721 yen, while Aisin was down 220 yen, or 5.3 percent, at 3,945 yen.

       Other automakers also lost ground, with Nissan Motor sliding 41.0 yen, or 7.2 percent, to 524.7 yen, while Honda Motor fell 164 yen, or 4.8 percent, to 3,221 yen.

       Mizuho Financial Group slipped 15.0 yen, or 1.0 percent, to 1,551.0 yen, after it reported a system failure that prevented branch counters across Japan from conducting transactions. The major banking group suffered an ATM outage and other troubles earlier this year.

       Trading volume on the main section rose to 1,231.97 million shares from Thursday's 1,076.24 million shares.

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