Japan stocks set to halt winning run in thin trade
(Adds comments and stocks)
By Aiko Hayashi
TOKYO, Dec 27 (Reuters) - Japanese stocks were set to snap a four-session winning streak on Thursday as investors locked in profits in recent gainers such as Mitsui Fudosan Co Ltd (8801.T) and other property firms in holiday-thinned trade after a flat finish on Wall Street.
One bright spot was Canon Inc (7751.T), which gained despite a fall in the overall market after hiking its dividend outlook.
The benchmark Nikkei average .N225 appears headed to end the year down nearly 10 percent, the first annual fall in five years, as Japanese stocks struggle in the shadow of booming markets and vibrant economies elsewhere in Asia.
"Trade is very thin and that's why profit-taking is having quite a bit of an impact in bringing down the market," said Norihiro Fujito, general manager of Mitsubishi UFJ Securities' investment research and information division.
"It's not as if there was a huge sell-off in the market."
Yutaka Miura, deputy manager of the equity information department at Shinko Securities, said investors cannot be bullish enough to keep buying as uncertainty remains about the U.S. market and currency moves after the New Year holiday.
The Nikkei average finished the morning session down 0.5 percent or 83.25 points at 15,570.29. It had finished Wednesday up 0.7 percent at 15,653.54, its highest close since Dec. 12.
The broader TOPIX index shed 0.6 percent or 8.83 points to 1,499.64.
Dealings were slow on the next-to-last trading day of the year, with 690 million shares changing hands on the Tokyo exchange's first section, compared with last week's morning average of 834 million.
Declining shares beat advancing ones by a ratio of nearly three to one.
PROPERTY, SHIPPING FIRMS SOLD
Shares of Mitsui Fudosan lost 2.2 percent to 2,460 yen, while Sumitomo Realty & Development Co Ltd (8830.T) declined 1.9 percent to 2,835 yen and Mitsubishi Estate Co Ltd (8802.T) fell 0.9 percent to 2,725 yen.
Other recent winners also came under pressure.
Among shippers, Nippon Yusen KK (9101.T) shed 2.1 percent to 896 yen and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd (9104.T) gave up 2 percent to 1,458 yen. Continued...
