Stocks came under heavy selling pressure Friday, bruised by mounting geopolitical risks in Ukraine and the Middle East.

The Nikkei 225 average closed down 154.55 points, or 1.01 percent, at 15,215.71. On Thursday, the key market gauge sagged 9.04 points. The Topix lost 10.09 points, or 0.79 percent, to close at 1,263.29, after falling 0.21 point the previous day.

Both indexes extended their losing streak to a third session.