Tokyo shares seasaw after US falls

Tokyo shares seesawed between positive and negative territory on Monday after Wall Street dipped following data that showed slower hiring in the United States, AFP reported.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index slid in early trade, but rose 0.26 percent, or 83.73 points, to 32,472.15, while the broader Topix index added 0.15 percent, or 3.45 points, to 2,258.35.

The market “will be weighed down by US losses and a stronger yen,” Monex senior market analyst Toshiyuki Kanayama said in a note.

Some shares were bought, however, after the Tokyo market closed lower for four consecutive days.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 0.6 percent while the broad-based S&P 500 dipped 0.3 percent. The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index slipped 0.1 percent.

The dollar traded at 142.39 yen against 142.08 yen in New York and 143.49 yen in Tokyo on Friday.

In Tokyo trading, SoftBank Group jumped 1.56 percent to 6,829 yen while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing climbed 0.95 percent to 34,890 yen.

Automakers were lower with Nissan dropping 1.54 percent to 587.9 yen while Toyota lost 1.30 percent to 2,269.5 yen.