Japan stocks fall as autos down, Yahoo Japan jumps

(Updates to mid-session)

TOKYO, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Japanese stocks slipped on Tuesday, with automakers down after weak U.S. November auto sales data.

But Yahoo Japan Corp's (4689.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) link-up with eBay Inc (EBAY.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) fuelled gains in Softbank Corp (9984.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which owns a big stake in the Japanese auctioneer.

The benchmark Nikkei .N225 ended the morning session down 0.5 percent or 78.69 points at 15,550.28.

The broader TOPIX index shed 0.6 percent or 8.96 points to 1,523.20. (Reporting by Aiko Hayashi)