Share prices and the yen came under severe selling pressure Friday in Tokyo amid reports that a credit crunch has forced a major food trader out of business.
The benchmark 225-issue Nikkei average tumbled 846.11 points, or 5.2 percent, to end the day at 15,314.89. The fall was the third steepest this year.
Toshoku Ltd., a trader listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's first section, filed Thursday for application of the Corporate Rehabilitation Law after banks reportedly declined to provide new loans to the debt-ridden company.