Asian Markets Update: Tokyo Markets Slip, Anticipate Weak Earnings

TOKYO -- Expectations of weak first-quarter earnings from key electronics makers, which will start to release numbers this week, sent key Japanese stock indices lower Monday.

The Nikkei 225 index lost 264.37, or 1.6%, to stand at 16,547.12, while the Topix index, which includes all shares listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's first section, shed 18.62, or 1.2%, to close at 1504.81. The the Nikkei over-the-counter index lost 34.55, or 2.0%, finishing at 1671.49.

With the Group of Eight summit yielding little over the weekend, the market took its cue from Friday's performance of the Nasdaq. Shares of Softbank, which invests in about 200 U.S. firms, slipped 650 yen, or 5.5%, to 11,190 ($102.88). ...