TOKYO: Tokyo stocks opened down 0.31 percent on Monday as investors awaited developments in the ongoing European sovereign debt crisis.
The Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange opened 25.86 points lower at 8,349.05.
The Nikkei may struggle to find a direction Monday with the focus this week likely on European Commission proposals to fight Europe's debt crisis, said Yumi Nishimura, senior market analyst at Daiwa Securities.
The proposals to be unveiled Wednesday will include new economic rules for the continent and shared representation for eurozone nations at the International Monetary Fund.
A proposal also calls for the eurozone to use its combined strength in the bond markets to replace some or all of the fund-raising currently being done by national governments.
"The European situation remains uncertain," Nishimura said.
Just before the market opened, government figures showed Japan logged a surprise trade deficit in October as exports dropped off more steeply than expected amid the yen's sharp rises against the dollar and euro.
The euro fetched $1.3522 and 103.96 yen in early Asian trade Monday, almost unchanged from $1.3519 and 104.00 yen in New York late Friday.
The dollar was at 76.88 yen, compared with 76.93 yen in New York and a post-war low of 75.32 yen at the end of last month.
US equity markets closed mixed Friday as the unresolved eurozone crisis and news of a deep partisan split in Congress's crucial deficit supercommittee clouded positive economic data.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.25 percent to 11,799.86 in closing trade.
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