Japan's Nikkei stock average slid 0.72 per cent today as investors moved to take profits after three days of rises.
Nippon Steel and other top steelmakers slipped in the face of rising costs, while wariness over US jobs data due out later in the day kept many investors sidelined ahead of the weekend.
The benchmark Nikkei shed 96.68 points to 13,293.22, while the broader Topix fell 0.8 per cent to 1,288.94.