Nikkei falls on profit-taking, Hitachi lower

TOKYO, Aug 2 (Reuters) The Nikkei average fell 0.69 percent in early trading on Wednesday on selling in recent gainers such as TDK Corp., while Hitachi Ltd. was untraded with a glut of sell orders after a newspaper report that a power company would seek damages for a shutdown of a nuclear power plant.

The Nikkei average was down 106.28 points at 15,334.63 as of 0005 GMT. The TOPIX index was down 0.72 percent at 1,555.75.

Major companies to announce earnings later in the day include Toray Industries, Mitsubishi Motors, Mitsubishi Materials and McDonald's Japan.

REUTERS VJ BST0559