Tokyo stocks open sharply lower following U.S. rate hike speculation

TOKYO, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks opened sharply lower Monday, with the benchmark Nikkei stock index dropping more than 2 percent, following Wall Street's sell-off on Friday on concerns interests rates will be hiked more quickly than expected.

As of 9:15 a.m., the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average dropped 552.04 points, or 2.37 percent, from Friday to 22,722.49.

The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, meanwhile, fell 36.10 points, or 1.94 percent, to 1,828.10.

Mining, nonferrous metal and machinery-oriented issues comprised those that declined the most in the opening minutes after the morning bell. Enditem