*Nikkei down 5.7 percent, after 11 pct gain over past 2 days
*Exporters fall on economy worry, yen
*Toyota drops almost 9 pct after profit fall report
(Adds comment, details)
By Aiko Hayashi
TOKYO, Nov 6 (Reuters) - The Nikkei average slid 5.7 percent
on Thursday as exporters such as Canon Inc <7751.T> tumbled after
a fresh batch of dismal U.S. economic data dampened the festive
mood from Barack Obama's victory in the presidential election.
Toyota Motor <7203.T>, which is set to announce results and
forecasts after the close, skidded nearly 9 percent after a
newspaper said the automaker's annual operating profit will miss
the 1 trillion yen ($10.2 billion) mark, more than halving from a
year earlier due to slow sales worldwide. []
"Investors were forcefully brought back to reality from the
euphoria relating to the election of the new U.S. president. They
are feeling the global economic slowdown once again," said
Katsuhiko Kodama, a senior strategist at Toyo Securities.
Grim economic news in the United States included a report
that showed deep cuts in employment by private employers in
October and data that showed the vast service sector contracted
sharply last month as the worst financial crisis in 80 years
roiled the world's largest economy.
But market participants also said that the market's pains
were not as bad as last month.
"What's different now from before is that we have buyers when
the market tests low points. Individual investors and public
pension funds are among those who will likely buy on dips if the
Nikkei breaks below 9,000," Kodama said.
In light trade, the benchmark Nikkei <> shed 541.06
points to end the morning at 8,980.18, after rising 11 percent
over the past two days.
The gains had come on the heels of a 24 percent decline in
the month of October, its biggest monthly fall in its 58-year
history.
The broader Topix <> lost 5.3 percent to 915.84.
U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones industrial
average <> closing down more than 5 percent, as investors
worry that the new U.S. administration won't be in a position to
act fast enough to avert a deep economic downturn. []
Kenichi Hirano, operating officer at Tachibana Securities,
said Japanese stocks have become relatively expensive, with the
projected price-earnings ratio of the Nikkei average around 15
times, compared to about 11 times of U.S. stocks.
"The Japanese market also had its own reason to take a break
today as it had rebounded sharply and the PER had become rather
high," he said.
TOYOTA DROPS BEFORE RESULTS, EXPORTERS HURT
Coupled with worries about the gloomy outlook for the global
economy, exporters also slid on a firmer yen, which curbs
overseas profits when they are brought back home.
In New York on Wednesday, the yen <JPY=> rose some 1.2
percent to 98.33 yen per dollar.
Canon tumbled 12.3 percent to 3,480 yen and Sony Corp
<6758.T> sank 10.3 percent to 2,315 yen.
Toyota lost 8.9 percent to 3,870 yen, while Honda Motor Co
<7267.T> skidded 7.5 percent to 2,540 yen, with the transport
equipment subindex <.ITEQP.T> falling 8.5 percent.
"Poor earnings have been already factored in, and I doubt
today's earnings announcements by Toyota and Elpida would lead to
a huge sell-off," Hirano said.
"Even if Toyota's operating profit were to miss the 1
trillion yen mark, that alone wouldn't accelerate dumping of its
shares at this point."
Elpida Memory <6665.T>, which is set to report its first-half
results after the close, fell 3 percent to 654 yen.
Trade was light on the Tokyo exchange's first section, with
1.06 billion shares changing hands, compared with last week's
morning average of 1.21 billion.
Declining stocks outpaced advancing ones by more than 7 to 1.
(Reporting by Aiko Hayashi; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
