Nikkei seen opening lower after Wall St, Mixi eyed

TOKYO, Sep 15 (Reuters) The Nikkei average is expected to open slightly lower on Friday following a fall on Wall Street and with investors a nervous of holding long positions over a three-day weekend.

Investors may also be wary of picking up major exporters such as Sony Corp. before the U.S. government releases the consumer price index (CPI) for August later in the day, offering a clue on inflation in a key market for Japanese goods.

''We'll probably start off weaker but overall the market should move very little today,'' said Takashi Ushio, head of the investment strategy division at Marusan Securities.

Nikkei futures traded in Chicago suggested a lower opening.

Chicago's Nikkei December futures closed at 15,850 Thursday, down 50 points from the Osaka finish.

Ushio and Yoku Ihara, a manager in the investment information department at Retela Crea Securities, both said the Nikkei average would likely move between 15,800 and 16,000 after rising 1.22 percent on Thursday to close at 15,942.39.

Investors will be watching closely to see where shares of Mixi Inc. first trade after Japan's most popular online community Web site ended its debut on the Mothers market for start-ups on Thursday untraded due to a glut of buy orders at 3.15 million yen, 103 percent above its IPO price.

Mixi is seen as a key barometer of sentiment for start-up firms.

The Mothers market has halved in value since mid-January when allegations surfaced of securities violations involving Web portal Livedoor Co., dampening interest in Internet stocks.

Japanese stock markets will be closed on Monday for a national holiday.

STOCKS TO WATCH -- Nintendo Co. Ltd. OS> The company said on Thursday it will start selling its new game console, the Wii, in Japan on Dec. 2 for 25,000 yen (2), making it the third and last major game maker to bring a next-generation console to market.

-- Future System Consulting Corp. and Woodland Corp.

Future System said on Thursday it would acquire fellow information technology firm Woodland by swapping 0.004762 a share for each Woodland share, valuing the smaller rival at a 1.9 percent discount to Woodland's stock price on Thursday.

-- Toshiba Corp. and Mitsubishi Electric Corp. T> Business daily Nihon Keizai reported electronics conglomerate Toshiba will likely pay a 4.5 yen per share dividend for the April-September first half, up from 3 yen in the first half last year.

The paper said Mitsubishi Electric will likely pay an interim dividend of 4 yen, up from 3 yen a year earlier.

-- Tokyo Electron Ltd. and other chip-equipment makers.

Global sales of chip-making equipment in July jumped 41.6 percent from a year earlier, with demand expected to stay strong, an industry group said on Thursday.

-- Kirin Brewery Co. Ltd. and Yakult Honsha Co. Ltd.

The two companies said on Thursday they would set up a health food joint venture on Oct. 1. Kirin is to hold a 55 percent stake in it.

REUTERS MQA PM0947