TOKYO: Japanese shares fell 0.70 percent by the break on Friday after a sluggish session on Wall Street and continuing fears over Europe's fiscal woes, with investors eyeing US jobs data later in the day.
The Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange lost 68.33 points to 9,699.28, while the Topix of all first-section shares shed 0.69 percent, or 5.77 points, to 826.80.
The losses came amid subdued trade with most regional markets closed for the Easter holidays, while the Dow on Wall Street provided a weak cue, slipping 0.11 percent to 13,060.14.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq edged up 0.40 percent at 3,080.50, as did the broader S&P 500, which finished 0.06 percent higher to 1,398.08.
"There weren't any decisive news catalysts overnight," said Rakuten Securities senior market analyst Masayuki Doshida.
"The (Nikkei) index is likely to be rangebound," with several regional bourses closed for the holiday, he added.
Investors were "pouring money into defensive stocks such as retailers and utilities" ahead of US non-farm payrolls data later in the day, said Fumiyuki Nakanishi, general manager of investment and research at SMBC Friend Securities.
But a high yen continued to weigh on Japanese shares, brokers said.
"With the euro/yen around the 107 level, the (Nikkei) index will continue to tick lower," said Yutaka Miura, senior technical analyst at Mizuho Securities.
The dollar stood at 82.26 yen, flat from New York in Thursday.
The euro was changing hands at $1.3067 and 107.51 yen, also flat.
Meanwhile, speculation that Japan would usher in further monetary easing measures rose after a morning meeting between Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa, analysts said.
"It is only natural that the markets regard the meeting as political pressure on the BoJ to loosen monetary policy further," Atsushi Ito, UBS Securities senior strategist in Tokyo, told Dow Jones Newswires.
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