Nikkei Closes 0.18 Pct. Lower Before Major Company Earnings

Tokyo stocks closed 0.18 percent lower in caution trading before monetary policy decisions and domestic corporate earnings.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average shed 36.72 points, from Friday at 19,983.32. But the broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange gained 0.23 points, or 0.01 percent, to 1,619.07.
Major decliners included mining, shipping and insurance issues, while pulp and paper and textiles led gainers.
The turnover was 2,084,7 billion yen (about 17.52 billion U.S. dollars). (Cihan/Xinhua)