TOKYO — Tokyo stocks opened down Monday after Wall Street slipped on weaker-than-expected US labour market data.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 0.97 percent, or 313.17 points, to 31,879.58 in early trade, while the broader Topix index lost 0.57 percent, or 12.88 points, to 2,261.75.
"The market is expected to start under pressure after the fall of US shares," online brokerage Monex said in a note.
Rapid, recent gains of Tokyo shares and the rise of the bond yields are also cause for concern, Rakuten Securities said.
New York shares ended lower on Friday after data showed that the United States added 187,000 jobs last month, below the market's expectation for 200,000.
But US unemployment fell, while hourly wages rose more than the market's expectations.
Global investors will turn their focus to inflation data, particularly of the United States, to gauge future moves on US interest rates, Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said.
"This week's intensively watched inflation data, particularly the US CPI, will need to show that the previous month's drop was not a one-time event; otherwise, more Fed action might be needed to control it," he wrote in a note.
The dollar stood at 141.65 yen, compared with 141.77 yen seen Friday in New York.
Among major shares, heavily weighted Fast Retailing lost 2.56 percent to 33,160 yen. Toyota gave up earlier gains and fell 0.43 percent to 2,427 yen. Sony Group lost 1.01 percent to 12,795 yen.
Advantest, a major producer of tests for chips, lost 4.04 percent to 18,185 yen.
High-tech investor SoftBank, which is due to release results this week along with a slew of other blue chips, fell 2.98 percent to 6,771 yen.
Leading steelmaker Nippon Steel rose 2.39 percent to 3,347 yen after it upgraded its earnings forecast. Gamemaker Nintendo rose 0.55 percent to 6,206 yen.
Agence France-Presse
