Nikkei falls 0.1 pct after tankan; Takashimaya down

TOKYO, July 2 (Reuters) The Nikkei average fell 0.1 per cent on Monday as investors sold department store operator Takashimaya Co. on weaker earnings, and property firms declined after the tankan survey of corporate sentiment showed the sector less optimistic about the next three months.

Some energy and commodities-related shares such as trading house Mitsubishi Corp. and Sumitomo Metal Mining Co. rose following a jump in the price of oil and copper, helping the broader TOPIX index find positive ground.

Investors found little in the Bank of Japan's quarterly tankan survey to inspire broad buying of stocks. The headline diffision index for big manufacturers' sentiment was plus 23, matching the consensus and unchanged frone-week closing high set the previous session. The TOPIX rose 0.14 percent to 1,777.38.

''The market is in a holding pattern. Wall Street looked a bit shaky and the tankan really gave nothing to go on,'' said Toshihiko Matsuno, a manager in the investment research department at SMBC Friend Securities.

''But basically the Nikkei is still in an uptrend, and should resume its gradual rise. It is still playing catch-up with other global markets, which had been outperforming it and hitting fresh year-to-date highs.'' Among the biggest contributors to the Nikkei's decline, chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron fell 1.1 percent to 8,980 yen, while Fujifilm Holdings fell 1.1 percent to 5,450 yen, hit by profit-taking following Friday's 3.4 percent surge.

The Nikkei is up about 5 percent since the start of 2007, compared with an 8 percent rise in both the U.S. Nasdaq and FTSE Eurofirst 300 ''This is really just a small correction as investors are a bit wary of pushing the Nikkei much further above the 18,000 mark,'' said Ken Masuda, a senior equities dealer at Shinko Securities.

REAL ESTATE HIT Trade was moderate, with 870 million shares changing hands on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's first section, down from the average of 852 million shares in the morning last week. Advancers outpaced decliners 918 to 655.

Mitsubishi Corp., which is an active investor in energy projects, rose 1.6 percent to 3,280 yen while Sumitomo Metal Mining, a smelter of nonferrous metals including copper, gained 2.4 percent to 2,740 yen.

Shares of Takashimaya slid 1.7 percent to 1,529 yen after Japan's top department store posted a 12 percent fall in operating profit for the March-May quarter on sluggish sales of high-end clothing on index for sector unchanged at 53 points in June from March, and the outlook to September trimming to 44.

''The tankan numbers show that the sector may be peaking out,'' said Credit Suisse analyst Yoji Otani. ''The momentum on the stocks has come to a halt, and the market is adjusting some of the overvalued ones.'' Mitsubishi Estate slipped 1.8 percent at 3,290 yen, while Mitsui Fudosan Co. dropped 1.2 percent to 3,420 yen.

REUTERS SKB KP0915