Japan shares slip on weak earnings, caution ahead of U.S. jobs data

TOKYO, Aug 7 (Reuters) - Japanese shares fell on Friday as
the market reacted to a string of disappointing earnings and
forecasts, while investors also took a cautious stance ahead of
the U.S. non-farm payroll data for July and a long weekend.
The benchmark Nikkei share average .N225 fell 0.64% to
22,273.62 by the midday break.
Japan stock markets will be closed on Monday for a public
holiday for observing 'Mountain Day'.
U.S. non-farm payroll due later in the day is widely
expected to show jobs creation in the United States slowed in
July from the previous month, indicating a resurgence in
COVID-10 infections is undermining the world's largest economy.
SUMCO Corp 3436.T , which produces equipment for making
semiconductors, slid 9.77% after reporting a 26.8% decline in
its January-September net profit.
SUMCO's fall dragged down its peer Advantest Corp 6857.T
by 4.04%, while Screen Holdings Co Ltd 7735.T and Tokyo
Electron Ltd 8035.T lost 4.01% and 3.2%, respectively.
Shiseido Co Ltd 4911.T. slumped 9.3% after the cosmetics
firm forecast a net loss and lower dividend for the full year.
Nikon Corp 7731.T dipped 8.32% to its lowest since May
1995, as it forecast an operating loss of 75 billion yen
($710.56 million) for the fiscal year. But not all earnings were bad, as game and electronic
commerce industries saw a surge in demand from people staying at
home due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nintendo Co Ltd 7974.T rose above 2.42% after posting a
five-fold jump in quarterly profit.
Square Enix Holdings Co Ltd 9684.T spiked 13.87% and
marked its record high, after the gaming company posted a 241.4%
increase in its operating profit for the three-month period
ended June 2020.
Mercari Inc 4385.T also jumped 13.52% to its highest level
since June 2018, as the flea market app operator logged a
better-than-expected operating loss for the year ended June 30.
The broader Topix .TOPX lost 0.23% to 1,546.32.


($1 = 105.5500 yen)