The Nikkei 225 fell sharply, dropping 930.73 yen from the previous day to close at 61,434.19 yen. While bargain hunting emerged after the previous day's plunge, the index was dragged lower by a decline in South Korea's Kospi, and heavyweight semiconductor-related stocks were sold across the board, pushing the intraday loss beyond 1,900 yen at one point. The Topix rose 10.44 points to 3,974.03, with 32 percent of stocks declining and 67 percent advancing. In the Tokyo foreign exchange market, the dollar-yen pair traded sideways in the upper 163 yen range ahead of the US Federal Open Market Committee decision, and as of 5 p.m., it stood at 163.67 to 69 yen, down 0.11 yen from the previous day, reflecting a stronger yen. Bond futures rose for a third straight day, with the lead contract for long-term government bonds up 0.25 yen at 127.48 yen, while the yield on newly issued 10-year government bonds fell 0.030 percentage point to 2.745 percent.