Tokyo Stocks Dive In Morning On Weak China PMI, Languid Wall St.

TOKYO, JAPAN - JAN. 4: Tokyo stocks fell sharply in morning trading on Monday, the first trading day of 2016, with investor sentiment stifled by a slide in Chinese manufacturing conditions in December and declines in New York stocks before the end of last year. The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average shed 492.30 points, or 2.59 percent, from last Wednesday to end the morning at 18,541.41 after briefly falling to a roughly 10-week intraday low of 18,518.60 with a loss of more than 500 points. Tokyo markets were closed Thursday and Friday for the New Year holidays. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange was down 31.70 points, or 2.05 percent, at 1,515.60. Every industry category on the main section lost ground except mining, with foods, rubber products and utilities leading decliners. Stocks opened lower, with investor sentiment dampened by losses on Wall Street on New Year's Eve last Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell more than one percent to close lower on an annual basis for the first time in seven years. Stocks narrowly tapered losses through midmorning but took a dive after the release of the private-sector Caixin purchasing managers' index showed a further decline in business conditions for Chinese manufacturers.