Nikkei down 0.4 pct as U.S. bailout worries weigh
(Updates to midmorning)
TOKYO, Sept 26 (Reuters) - The Nikkei average fell 0.4 percent on Friday, dragged lower by blue-chip exporters such as Kyocera (6971.T) as a proposed $700 billion bailout deal for the U.S. financial sector stalled in Washington.
Financial services firm CSK Holdings Corp (9737.T) tumbled more than 13 percent after saying it would post an annual loss, hurt by the turmoil in global credit markets, while shipping firms slid again on a further fall in a key freight index. Many investors were on the sidelines, watching events unfold in Washington. U.S. stocks futures SPc1 were down more than 1 percent.
As the U.S. Congress struggled to find agreement on modifying the Bush proposal to attack the housing market crisis, a group of conservative Republican lawmakers proposed an alternative mortgage insurance plan. [ID:nN25397072]
"Everything depends on the bailout plan now. Japanese stocks are no longer moving on domestic factors," said Masaru Hamasaki, senior strategist at Toyota Asset Management.
"The Republicans want the markets to take care of themselves. That means we have to prepare ourselves for a disaster in a worst-case scenario."
As of 0050 GMT, the benchmark Nikkei average .N225 shed 44.78 points to 11,961.75, after starting the day in positive territory. The broader Topix rose 0.2 percent to 1,155.89.
CSK dropped 13.2 percent to 1,577 yen to become one of the top drags on the Nikkei 225.
Some exporters with a heavy volume weighting on the Nikkei fell, with industrial robot maker Fanuc Ltd (6954.T) down 2.2 percent at 8,170 yen. Electric parts maker Kyocera slid 2.1 percent to 8,300 yen.
Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd (9104.T) fell 3.6 percent to 974 yen after the Baltic Exchange's chief sea freight index for global raw materials trade .BADI tumbled more than 7 percent on Thursday to its lowest point since November 2006.
Among gainers, Takeda Pharmaceutical (4502.T) climbed 2.8 percent to 5,590 yen after the company said t would buy back up to 1.1 percent, or up to 50 billion yen worth, of its outstanding shares. (Reporting by Aiko Hayashi; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
