TOKYO, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks finished lower on Monday after the Japanese government said that it would ban the entry of all foreign nationals in principle from Tuesday amid concerns over the new Omicron variant of the COVID-19.

Briefly falling nearly 2 percent, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average finished 467.70 points, or 1.63 percent, lower from Friday at 28,283.92, its lowest closing level since Oct. 13.

The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange closed 36.50 points, or 1.84 percent, lower at 1,948.48.

Trading volume on the main section increased to 1,530.62 million shares from Friday's 1,302.90 million shares.

Tracking a sharp drop in the U.S. Dow Jones index Friday, Tokyo stocks opened low from the outset, but the benchmark Nikkei index rebounded quickly and almost finished at positive territory toward the end of the morning session, as investors bought on dips on advances in U.S. stock futures.

However, the rebound was temporary as Tokyo stocks extended losses in the afternoon after Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Japan will bring back its blanket ban on new entries of foreigners on Tuesday due to the potential danger of the Omicron variant.

"There is little information about the Omicron variant so the market was volatile," said Toshikazu Horiuchi, an equity strategist at IwaiCosmo Securities Co., adding, "But the fresh restriction has hurt investor sentiment due to concerns that it may weigh on the economy."

Horiuchi also said that market participants would pay attention to movements in the U.S. stock markets later in the day to see whether the sell-off continues.

By the close of play, air transportation, land transportation, and textile and apparel sectors led the downward trend. Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones 1,989 to 159 on the First Section, while 32 finished unchanged.

Transportation and leisure-related firms faced a hard blow from the new variant as concerns over another surge in infections might directly drag down travel demand.

Tokyo Disney Resort operator Oriental Land dropped 4.8 percent, and Sanrio, the operator of theme parks featuring Hello Kitty, sank 6.0 percent.

Among transportation firms, East Japan Railway fell 3.9 percent, and Odakyu Electric Railway slumped 3.8 percent. Enditem

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