Tokyo stocks drop in early trading

Tokyo: Tokyo shares dropped in early trading on Monday as investors were disheartened by both Chinese manufacturing data and US consumer spending statistics coming in below expectations.  At 9.15 a.m. (local time), the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average fell 292.39 points, or 1.53 percent, from Friday to 18,790.71, while the broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange dropped 25.66 points, or 1.65 percent, to 1,532.54, Xinhua news agency reported. The majority of categories on the main section fell into negative territory, led by iron and steel, shipping and financing business shares.