Nikkei slips as automakers, real estate stocks dip

By Elaine Lies

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese stocks slid on Thursday, weighed down by real estate firms and automakers, which were sold on worries about the health of the U.S. economy. U.S. stocks rose on Wednesday as investors shifted into defensive shares, especially drugmakers, but market players said Tokyo shares had risen on Wednesday in anticipation of such gains and had little energy to rise again.

"We need to see what happens in the United States, particularly what policy steps the Federal Reserve may adopt," said Takeshi Ozawa, senior fund manager at Norinchukin Zenkyoren Asset Management.

"The overall direction in terms of individual shares is not so clear, but in the short-term it does seem as if overall selling simply out of fear may be over."

Shares of automakers such as Toyota Motor Corp fell despite a slightly softer yen due to continuing worries about U.S. economic health, and this weighed on the market as a whole.

"I haven't heard of any specific (reason) for the fall, but there are concerns about the U.S. economy," said Yusuke Sakai, a manager of equities trading at Mizuho Securities.

"Japanese automakers should do well considering the industry's ecological focus, but if the overall pie becomes smaller, they are bound to be negatively affected."

Realtors were also a drag on the market, apparently after a bearish brokerage report.

By midsession, the Nikkei had slipped 0.8 percent to 14,482.22, a loss of 116.94 points. The broader TOPIX was down nearly 1 percent at 1,410.57.