TOKYO, Sept. 1 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks ended essentially flat Tuesday as trading house-linked stocks finding favor was offset by selling for gains although sentiment was underpinned by solid manufacturing data from China.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average shed 1.69 points, or 0.01 percent, from Monday to close the day at 23,138.07.
The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, meanwhile, lost 2.37 points, or 0.15 percent, to finish at 1,615.81.
Local brokers said that investors continued to increase their holdings in trading house-related issues following their advance the previous day after billionaire Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. acquired a 5 percent stake in the top five trading houses in Japan.
But gains were broadly offset by selling following the Nikkei's recent rise, with real estate issues ripe for profit-taking, they added.
In terms of Japan's leadership race following Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's abrupt decision to resign due to ill health, market strategists said that while some hit the sidelines to see how the election race would shape up, the majority had factored in the situation under the assumption that the country's monetary and fiscal policies would remain the same under the new leader.
"Market players have already priced in the political factors and were beginning to focus on actual market conditions and corporate performances," Norihiro Fujito, senior investment strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co., was quoted as saying.
Helping to maintain a largely positive market mood and cap losses, China announcing on Monday that manufacturing activity expanded in August in a further sign the world's second-largest economy has continued to recover from the global pandemic, provided hopes for a broader global recovery, strategists here said.
China's official manufacturing Purchasing Manager's Index (PMI) for August stood at 51.0, compared to 51.1 in July, the National Bureau of Statistics said, with a reading above 50 indicating expansion, they highlighted.
By the close of play, precision instrument and wholesale trade issues comprised those that advanced the most, while land transportation, and farm and fishery issues comprised notable decliners.
Among real estate issues weighing on the market, Mitsui Fudosan dropped 2.1 percent, while Mitsubishi Estate fell 1.1 percent. Tokyo Tatemono, meanwhile, ended the day 1.2 percent lower.
Insurance-related issues also lost ground following long-term U.S. Treasury yields dropping overnight, and Dai-ichi Life Holdings slipped 0.7 percent, Tokio Marine Holdings lost 1.4 percent, while T&D Holdings ended 0.8 percent lower.
Trading houses gained, however, with Marubeni adding 1.2 percent, Sumitomo gaining 1.9 percent, while Mitsubishi Corp. climbed 3.1 percent.
Mitsui & Co. added 2 percent, while Itochu Corp. also closed in positive territory, adding 1.4 percent by the close.
Issues that fell outpaced those that rose by 1,162 to 915 on the First Section, while 94 ended the day unchanged.
On the main section on Tuesday, 1.027 billion shares changed hands, dropping from Monday's volume of 1.341 billion shares.
The turnover on the second trading day of the week came to 1.861 trillion yen (17.604 billion U.S. dollars). Enditem
