Japanese shares fell sharply Wednesday amid growing concerns about the health of the global economy, according to dpa. The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average lost 400.8 points, or 2.25 per cent, to end at 17,412.58 while the broader-based Topix index was down 29.26 points, or 2.04 per cent, at 1406.83. Overnight, growing political instability in Greece helped lead to heavy losses in stock markets in Europe. On currency markets at 3 pm (0600 GMT), the dollar traded at 119.07-08 yen, down from Tuesday's 5 pm quote of 119.66-68 yen. The euro was quoted at 147.55-57 yen, down from 147.76-78 yen late Tuesday.