Japan's Nikkei share average is set to open lower on Tuesday, tracking a decline on Wall Street, with investors likely to remain sidelined amid a lack of trading cues. The benchmark Nikkei .N225 is likely to trade between 13,400 and 13,700, strategists said, after shedding 0.2 percent to 13,636.28 on Monday. The broader Topix .TOPX eased 0.1 percent to 1,140.00. Nikkei futures in Chicago closed at 13,540 on Monday, down 0.8 percent from the Osaka close of 13,650. "The Tokyo market is likely to start lower, tracking cues from Wall Street. There's some possibility of another volatile day if speculators decide to attack the market, as the volume is likely to remain very low," said Mitsushige Akino, chief fund manager at Ichiyoshi Asset Management. "Most investors, I would say 90 percent of players, would prefer to wait and see today." U.S. stocks had traded higher for most of the session on Monday, as sharply weaker orders for long-lasting manufactured goods eased investors' worries of a cutback in the Federal Reserve's economic stimulus. But they turned negative in the last hour of trading after U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry called Syria's use of chemical weapons "undeniable. Investors are also watching how other Asian stocks will fare, especially in India and Indonesia, Ichiyoshi's Akino said. Emerging markets in the region have had a torrid time in recent weeks on concerns about a turn in Fed policy. The yen was last traded at 98.39 yen against the dollar. The greenback is hovering below a three-week high of 99.15 yen touched on Friday. The Japanese currency is down 13 percent versus the dollar for the year, weighed by the Bank of Japan's radical monetary stimulus launched in April to end years of stubborn deflation and foster growth. A weaker yen sharpens Japanese exporters' competitive edge in global markets and boosts their dollar earnings when repatriated. The Nikkei is up 31 percent this year, spurred by the Japanese government's fiscal expansionary policy and the Bank of Japan's aggressive monetary stimulus. Wall St falls after Kerry blasts Syria on chemical weapons.N Dollar edges up as Fed debate shifts to size of pullbackFRX/ Government bond prices gain on weaker economic data US/ Gold breaks above $1,400 on weak U.S. durable goods dataGOL/ Brent hits 5-mth high on Syria, settles lower on U.S.dataO/R STOCKS TO WATCH -- ANA HOLDINGS INC (9202.T) ANA will acquire a 49 percent stake in Asian Wings Airways, a mid-tier airline in Myanmar, marking the first such investment by a foreign firm since the country began democratizing in 2011, the Nikkei newspaper said. -- MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES LTD (7011.T) Mitsubishi Heavy said on Monday it will open an office in Basra, Iraq's second-largest city, on September 1, aiming to respond swiftly to emerging large-scale social infrastructure improvement projects in the country. Source : Reuters
