Nikkei drops, tourism shares hit by growing China virus concerns

* Nikkei falls 2.0%, biggest in 5 months
* Airline, Tokyo Disney Land operator among hit hardest
* Suspicions of accounting problems hit Net One System,
Aruhi
* Maker of protective attire, masks, hospital apparatus soar

By Hideyuki Sano
TOKYO, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average
posted its biggest one-day loss in
in five months on Monday, with tourism-related stocks under
pressure amid fears that a virus outbreak in China could be more
deadly and harder to contain than initially thought.
The Nikkei share average .N225 slumped 2.03%, its biggest
percentage fall since Aug. 26, to end at 23,343.51 points, the
lowest finish since Jan. 8. The broader Topix .TOPX lost 1.61%
to 1,702.57.
China extended its Lunar New Year holiday and more big
businesses shut down and told staff to work from home in a bid
to contain the spread of the disease as the death toll rose to
81. "While we can't tell how much the disease will spread, one
thing we can say for sure now is that consumption in China is
already taking a hit as Beijing tries to contain the epidemic,"
said Hiroyuki Ueno, senior strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui Trust
Asset Management.
The Chinese government had barred outbound packaged tour
travel for Chinese travellers, denting shares of Japanese
companies that have benefited from a rising influx of Chinese
tourists. Topix airline shares subindex .IAIRL.T fell 3.4% to their
lowest since May 2017, with ANA Holdings 9202.T and Japan
Airlines 9201.T falling 3.0% and 3.9% respectively.
Shares of Oriental Land 4661.T dropped 7.8%, the biggest
fall in five years, following a Nikkei report that the operator
of Tokyo Disney Resort is likely to post its first fall in
profit in three years in the nine months ended December.

Travel and leisure firm H.I.S. 9603.T fell 6.8%, while
Keisei Electric Railway 9090.T , which runs trains to Tokyo's
Narita Airport from the city centre, shed as much as 6.2%,
largest loss in 3 1/2 years for the usually defensive stocks.
Cosmetic makers were also affected as their top-line has
been boosted by Chinese demand, with Shiseido 4911.T down 5.5%
and Kose 4922.T declining 5.9%.
On the other hand, protective outfit maker Azearth 3161.T
and Airtech Japan 6291.T , who manufacture various apparatus
for hospitals to prevent infections, rose by their daily limits,
jumping 23.7% and 17.1% respectively.
Niitaka 4465.T , which makes disinfectors, gained 21.8%
while mask maker Kawamoto Corp 3604.T shot up 21.6%.
Elsewhere, Net One System 2327.T , which has been reported
to have spearheaded fictitious transactions involving several
companies to pad profit, sank 23%.
Aruhi 7198.T lost 11.1% on media report of document
fabrication at the housing loan provider's franchise firms. The
company said it has not confirmed the existence of such
problems.