Nikkei 225 trying to hang onto 20,500.00 as declines weigh

• Risk aversion is still the market play of choice, and equities continue to suffer.
• Broad market assets can't catch a break as 2018 delivers one setback after another.

The Nikkei 225 is trading up slightly in the new week's Asia session, testing the waters around the 20,500.00 level.

The possibility of a full-on trade war between the US and China continue to hamper risk appetite in markets, and Japan's leading Nikkei 225 stock index is hanging near six-month lows as market sentiment weighs down equities.

The Nikkei is geared to suffer its first quarterly decline since late 2016, and protectionism spawning out of the US' recent bout of tariff brandishing is being held as the primary culprit, although it was initially fresh market fears of inflation risks that took the top off of equities and other risk assets in January of 2018, and with geopolitical tensions on the rise, market sentiment has been unable to snap the losing streak.

Nikkei 225 Levels to watch

With the Nikkie hung up on a six-month low, support is a thin showing, with the recent bottom at 20,287.00 propping up the current action by itself. January 2017's swing high of 19,700.00 is the next major support zone, while resistance piles in from March's previous low of 20,680.00 and February's swing low at 21,060.00 right behind it.