Around the World's Markets: Tokyo

JAPANESE stocks closed a touch weaker, with investors and dealers braced for moves on Wall Street after the US Labor Day holiday and clues in Japanese gross domestic product data for the April-June quarter, due on Thursday.

The Nikkei 225 fell 49.01 points, 0.28 per cent, to 17,707.50. "The market is losing direction," said one trader. "That's why people made excuses for not building positions." Dealers were inclined to stay on the sidelines ahead of the GDP data, which will show whether Japan's economy has begun to recover.