RPT-GLOBAL MARKETS-Japan stocks fall, dollar at 8-mth low vs yen

                                
 (Repeats to more subscribers)
                                
 * Nikkei dips 2.1 percent as strong yen hurts exporters
                                
 * Dollar crawls towards 15-year low vs yen
                                
 * MSCI Asia ex-Japan off 3-month high, down
                                
 * Treasury yields down on weak U.S. data, Fed talk
                                
 By Kevin Yao
                                
 SINGAPORE, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Japanese stocks fell behind
their Asian peers and slid 2 percent on Wednesday as the yen
climbed towards 15-year highs against the U.S. dollar after
weak U.S. data spurred talk of more Federal Reserve easing.
                                
 Asia-Pacific stocks outside of Japan were slightly off
their three-month peaks scaled on Tuesday and are seen prone to
profit-taking as investors remain sensitive to any signs of
fatigue in the global economy.
                                
 The latest signs came in the form of disappointing U.S.
consumer spending and housing market reports, which fanned
speculation the Fed may further relax its loose policy at its
Aug. 10 meeting and pushed the dollar to an eight-month low.
                                
 European shares were set to open lower, with financial
spreadbetters expecting Britain's FTSE 100 <.FTSE> to fall
about 0.4 percent; Germany's DAX <.GDAXI> to fall 0.2 percent
and France's CAC 40 <.FCHI> to ease 0.1 percent.
                                
 Tokyo stocks fell 2.1 percent, hit by fears that a strong
yen ill erode exporters' profits and sap economic growth.
                                
 Such concerns combined with a run of disappointing U.S.
data that cast a pall over recovery in the world's largest
economy, boosted Japanese government bonds, pushing the 10-year
yield <JP10YTN=JBTC> below 1 percent for the first time in
seven years.
                                
 Japan's finance minister reiterated that he was closely
watching currency moves as the dollar's weakness tests the
tolerance for a stronger yen as the economy struggles to pull
out of a crippling spell of deflation. [ID:nTOE67209M]
                                
 "Today's stock fall is really all about the yen. At this
kind of level, there's inevitably worries about what sort of
impact this will have on company earnings going forward," said
Toshiyuki Kanayama, a market analyst at Monex Inc.
                                
  Chip gear manufacturer Tokyo Electron <8035.T> tumbled
nearly 5 percent, while digital camera maker Canon Inc <7751.T>
declined 4 percent and electronics parts maker Kyocera Corp
<6971.T> fell 3 percent.
                                
The MSCI Asia-Pacific index that excludes Japapn
<.MIAPJ0000PUS> was down 0.1 percent.
                                
 Overnight, both the Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> and
the Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> fell as disappointing
earnings and economic data trigged profit-taking after Monday's
rally drove them to a 10-week high.
                                
 Data showed U.S. consumer spending and incomes were flat in
June while home purchase contracts tumbled to a record low,
implying an anaemic economic recovery for the remainder of this
year. [ID:nN03184274]
                                
 U.S. Treasury debt climbed, sending two-year yields
<US2YT=RR> to an all-time low amid speculation that the Fed may
launch a new round of debt purchases to inject cash into the
economy.
                                
 WEAK DOLLAR
                                
 Talk of further Fed easing prompted investors to cut their
dollar exposure, pushing the U.S. currency as low as 85.32 yen
<JPY=>, its lowest since late November.
                                
 A fall below a November low of 84.82 yen would take the
pair to its lowest level in 15 years.
                                
 "The market is full of dollar bears," said Ayako Sera,
market strategist at Sumitomo Trust & Banking.
                                
  The euro dipped a fifth of a percent from late U.S. trade
to $1.3205 <EUR=>, remaining within sight of a three-month high
of $1.3262 reached on Tuesday.
                                
 Stronger growth in Europe and Asia has supported the view
that central banks in those regions could raise interest rates
before the Fed.
                                
  The dollar index <.DXY>, which gauges its performance
against major currencies, was steady at 80.65 -- still below
its 200-day moving average. It fell below the key moving
average for the first time since January, signalling further
falls.
                                
 Spot gold <XAU=> rose as far as $1,194.75 an ounce, the
highest in just over one week, as speculators bet China's
demand would increase and as investors shifted out of equities
on concerns about the U.S. economy.
                                
 Oil <CLc1> fell 45 cents to $82.11 a barrel after touching
$82.64 on Tuesday, the highest in three months.
 (Additional reporting by Elaine Lies and Rika Otsuka in TOKYO,
Editing by Tomasz Janowski)