Tokyo stocks opened lower Wednesday, as investors continued to lock in profits after a lengthy series of gains while a firmer yen against the dollar also weighed on the market. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 0.59 percent or 137.11 points at 22,953.92 in early trade, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.80 percent or 8.06 points to 1,620.31. "The Japanese market is dominated by sell orders chiefly in exporters as investors were discouraged by falls in the Dow" on Wall Street and a stronger yen, said chief strategist Yoshihiro Ito of Okasan Online Securities. The dollar fetched 107.78 yen in early Asian trade against 107.73 yen in New York and 107.96 yen in late Tokyo hours on Tuesday. In New York, while the Nasdaq powered to its second straight daily record, stocks elsewhere on Wall Street retreated, with the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average closing lower. The mixed trading outcome came as the Federal Reserve's policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) began its two-day meeting. Analysts expected few big changes as the coronavirus pandemic rages on. Even so, "it would be unlikely to see Tokyo investors move actively towards bargain-hunting purchases" ahead of the Fed meeting result, Mizuho Securities said in a note. In Tokyo, Panasonic dropped 1.39 percent to 984.3 yen, Toyota traded down 0.63 percent at 7,084 yen and Honda was off 0.63 percent at 3,007. Honda told AFP that cyber attacks on the firm's server on Monday had disrupted operations at some plants globally but production lines were gradually recovering. Advantest, which dropped sharply on profit-taking in the previous session, was up 1.35 percent at 5,990 yen. On Wall Street, the Dow ended down 1.1 percent at 27,272.30. kh/ric/axn