ZCZC
BCN-05
STOCKS-JAPAN-OPEN LEAD
Tokyo stocks open lower on profit-taking
TOKYO, Dec 28, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Tokyo stocks opened lower on Friday despite a
late rally in New York, as investors cashed in after the previous day’s
strong rises.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index, which rose nearly four percent on Thursday,
lost 0.51 percent or 102.12 points to 19,975.50 in early trade.
The broader Topix index turned down 0.78 percent or 11.66 points to
1,489.97 after the previous day’s rise of nearly five percent.
“It’s inevitable that selling emerges after sharp rises like yesterday’s,”
said Makoto Sengoku, market analyst at Tokai Tokyo Research Centre.
On the final trading day of the year, the Nikkei was heading for its first
closure with an annual loss in seven years.
Over the year, the bellwether index has lost more than 10 percent.
“The Nikkei scored annual gains for the past six years under Abenomics but
it’s not the case any more,” Sengoku said, referring to Prime Minister Shinzo
Abe’s pro-spending policies.
“This is because of large swings caused by the Trump administration rather
than domestic problems,” he told AFP, noting President Donald Trump’s trade
spat with China weighed particularly on the market.
Japan “cannot be unaffected when the world’s two biggest economies are
fighting,” he said.
But Japanese corporate activity remains solid at least for now, which could
invite buy-backs sometime next year, he added.
Fresh government data released Friday confirmed Japan’s job market remains
tight, with unemployment staying low at 2.5 percent for November.
Factory output in November turned down 1.1 percent from the previous month,
but the drop had been widely expected after an October rise in production.
The dollar edged down to 110.83 yen from 111.02 yen in New York Thursday
afternoon.
In individual stocks trade, Honda fell 1.42 percent to 2,855.5 yen and Sony
dropped 1.00 percent to 5,330 yen.
Major bank Mitsubishi UFJ lost 0.61 percent to 534.7 yen and IT investor
SoftBank Group fell 0.73 percent to 7,227 yen.
BSS/AFP/SR/1720 HRS