* Nikkei briefly hits nearly 3-month low
* Banks fall after Lloyds warning hits peers
* Property firms slide as apartments for sale in Jan fall
* Eyes on automakers as restructure plan deadline looms
(Adds stocks, details)
By Elaine Lies
TOKYO, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei average fell 1.5
percent on Tuesday after touching a nearly three-month low, with
banks such as Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group <8306.T> down after
a profit warning by Britain's Lloyds Banking Group hit global
peers.
Property shares such as Mitsui Fudosan <8801.T> took a
beating as well after dismal apartment sales data, though falls
in the overall market were countered by gains in general
contractors after a ratings upgrade.
Honda Motor Co <7267.T> rose for most of the morning on
strong demand for its Insight hybrid before turning down just
before the end of morning trade.
But most investors were focused on restructuring plans that
General Motors Corp <GM.N> and Chrysler LLC [] are required
to submit by Tuesday showing how they can be made viable after
receiving $13.4 billion in emergency aid. []
"Basically, everyone wants to see how this goes, with a
failure to meet the deadline likely to lead to selling," said
Yumi Nishimura, deputy general manager of the investment advisory
section at Daiwa Securities SMBC.
"Although the possibility certainly exists that they may end
up filing for bankruptcy, the market has not factored this in."
Though the Nikkei largely brushed off Monday's data showing
the Japanese economy's worst quarterly contraction in 35 years,
sentiment is likely to remain subdued, market players said.
"There's no question that the environment remains quite grim,
and this dark situation will be with us for a while," said
Hiroichi Nishi, general manager at the equity division of Nikko
Cordial Securities.
The benchmark Nikkei <> shed 112.68 points to 7,637.49,
its lowest since Nov. 21 last year. The broader Topix <>
shed 1.6 percent to 758.20.
BANKS, APARTMENTS
Bank shares slid in the wake of falls by their global peers
after Friday's profit warning by Lloyds <LLOY.L> that revived
concerns it could need more state funds or be fully nationalised
due to deepening problems at its subsidiary HBOS, which it bought
last month. []
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Japan's top lender, lost 4.3
percent to 450 yen, while No.2 bank Mizuho Financial Group
<8411.T> slipped 3.9 percent to 200 yen. Sumitomo Mitsui
Financial Group <8316.T> fell 3.3 percent to 3,250 yen.
Property firms slid after data released on Monday showed the
number of new apartment units put up for sale in metropolitan
Tokyo for January fell 24.1 percent from a year before.
Mitsui Fudosan, Japan's largest real estate developer, lost 6
percent to 1,095 yen while Sumitomo Realty & Development <8830.T>
fell 5.4 percent to 995 yen and Mitsubishi Estate <8802.T> lost
4.6 percent to 1,094 yen.
The real estate subindex <.IRLTY.T> lost 4.4 percent, making
it the third-biggest loser among the subindices.
Tech shares, which climbed last week, were hit by selling as
well. Advantest Corp <6857.T> fell 4 percent to 1,297 yen and
Tokyo Electron <8035.T> fell 3.7 percent to 3,350 yen.
But general contractors bucked the trend, with Obayashi Corp
<1802.T> up 2.7 percent at 423 yen and fellow contractor Shimizu
Corp <1803.T> climbing 3.2 percent to 386 yen, extending gains
made on Monday after Nomura Securities upgraded them to "buy"
from "neutral".
Bridgestone Corp <5108.T>, Japan's biggest tyre maker, jumped
3.1 percent to 1,322 yen after Credit Suisse upgraded it to
"outperform" from "neutral" and raised its target price to 1,700
yen from 1,400 yen, citing its resilience amid negative trends.
Honda was up for most of the morning after Japan's No.2
automaker said orders for the new Insight -- its first real
attempt at selling gas-sipping hybrid cars in big volumes -- have
exceeded 10,000 units since it unveiled the car earlier this
month.
A Honda spokeswoman said the car's low price and fuel
efficiency helped contribute to the solid demand. []
But it turned negative just before the end of morning trade,
slipping 0.5 percent to 2,190 yen.
(Additional reporting by Aiko Hayashi; Editing by Michael
Watson)
