Tokyo stocks open lower on Wall Street's overnight retreat, firm yen hits exporters

TOKYO, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks opened lower Thursday tracking losses on Wall Street overnight, with a strong yen dragging down exporter-oriented issues.

As of 9:15 a.m, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average dropped 122.07 points, or 0.56 percent, from Wednesday to 21,724.41.

The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, meanwhile, lost 8.27 points, or 0.50 percent, at 1,632.99.

Pulp and paper, bank and pharmaceutical-linked issues comprised those that declined the most in the opening minutes from the morning bell.