By Stanley White
TOKYO, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Japanese stocks edged lower on
Wednesday as an approaching deadline for U.S. tariffs on nearly
$160 billion worth of Chinese consumer goods just weeks before
Christmas kept investors risk-averse.
The Nikkei index .N225 fell 0.26% to 23,350.20 by 0138
GMT, with industrial and healthcare sectors leading the
declines.
The tariffs are set to kick in on Dec. 15, but the United
States and China are planning a delay as trade talks continue,
the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. However, some traders were cautious as negotiations between
the two countries have been fractious and both sides have sent
mixed signals about the chance of agreeing to a deal to end a
trade row that has dragged on for more than a year.
Some investors also avoided taking big positions ahead of
the outcome of a rate-setting meeting by the U.S. Federal
Reserve later in the day and a British general election the
following day, which could cause gyrations in financial markets.
There were 63 advancers on the Nikkei index against 156
decliners.
The largest percentage losers included container shipper
Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd 9104.T down 2.7%, followed by Taiheiyo
Cement Corp 5233.T losing 2.18% and drugmaker Eisai Co Ltd
4523.T down 2.12%.
The largest percentage gainers included industrial machinery
maker Hitachi Zosen Corp 7004.T up 3.18%, followed by silicon
maker Sumco Corp 3436.T gaining 2.7% and marine food producer
Nippon Suisan Kaisha Ltd 1332.T up 2.19%.
The broader Topix index .TOPX fell 0.45% to 1,715.96.
The volume of shares traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's
main board .TOPX was 0.43 billion, compared with the 30-day
average of 1.25 billion.