TOKYO, Oct 4, 2021 (BSS/AFP) - Tokyo stocks opened higher but quickly

slipped into negative territory on Monday, with investors eyeing the
unveiling of Japan's new cabinet later in the day and other events this week.

  The benchmark Nikkei 225 index started up 0.88 percent or 253.80 points at
29,024.87 in early trade, while the broader Topix index advanced 1.03 percent
or 20.38 points to 2,006.69.

  But after buying back some shares following five straight days of declines,
investors turned cautious and the market moved lower.

  Among events being tracked by investors will be a policy speech by Japan's
new leader Fumio Kishida and key US jobs data later this week, analysts said.

  Last week, Japan's ruling party elected former foreign minister Kishida its
new leader, setting him on course to become the next prime minister of the
world's third-largest economy. Kishida will be confirmed as the new premier
in a vote in parliament later in the day and will then lead the Liberal
Democratic Party (LDP) into general elections that must happen by November.

  Local media reported details of the new government, which did not prompt
strong market reactions. The names include a mix of fresh faces and
holdovers.

  The dollar fetched 110.94 yen in early Asian trade, againt 111.02 yen in
New York late Friday.

  Nissan was up 2.27 percent at 567.9 yen after a report said the automaker
is in talks with China's Great Wall Motors to sell its plants in Spain.

  Honda was up 1.47 percent at 3,442 yen, shrugging off its announcement
sales in the US dropped 24.7 percent in September.

  Some blue-chip exporters were lower, with Panasonic trading down 1.97
percent at 1,319.5 yen, Canon off 0.89 percent at 2,664 yen and Olylmpus off
0.61 percent at 2,352.5 yen.

  On Wall Street, the Dow finished 1.4 percent higher at 34,326.46, the
broad-based S&P gained 1.2 percent and the tech-rich Nasdaq climbed 0.8
percent.