Nikkei ends 0.2% down

Japan share market finished slight lower on Tuesday, 29 March 2016, following a raft of official data that dented investor sentiment. The market weakness was also due to stock holdings reduction from investors before the end of the fiscal year and caution ahead of U.S. Federal Reserve Janet Yellen's speech later in the day. The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended down 30.84 points, or 0.18%, at 17103.53. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange finished 4.25 points, or 0.31%, lower at 1,377.60.

Japan's jobless rate rose slightly to 3.3% in February, up from 3.2% in January, despite labour demand remaining at the highest level in two decades, as against expectation of remain unchanged at 3.2%. Other official numbers released from Japan on Tuesday showed that household spending rose 1.2% in February compared with the same month last year, against expectations for a decline of 1.5%. Retail sales rose 0.5% in February from a year earlier, lower than expectations for an increase of 1.7%.

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