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STOCKS-MARKETS-JAPAN-CLOSE
Tokyo stocks close lower on trade worries, typhoon damage
TOKYO, Sept 5, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Tokyo stocks closed lower on Wednesday,
weighed down by the country’s worst typhoon in 25 years and continued worries
about trade conflicts.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index ended down 0.51 percent or 116.07 points at
22,580.83, while the broader Topix index was down 0.77 percent or 13.28
points at 1,704.96.
Some shares dropped with the closure of the Kansai International Airport,
a key cargo hub particularly for electronic parts, after Typhoon Jebi made
landfall Tuesday.
At least 10 people were killed in the storm and it was unclear when
service would resume at the airport, which accommodates over 400 flights per
day.
Shares in Nankai Electric Railway, which operates a train line serving the
airport as well as regional lines, plunged 4.44 percent to 2,776 yen.
Chip-making devices maker Tokyo Electron closed 1.64 percent lower at
18,210 yen and chip maker Renesas Electronics slipped 0.61 percent to 807
yen.
Cosmetics firm Shiseido fell 4.15 percent to 7,561 yen on fears the
typhoon could scare off tourists, who snap up the company’s products in
Japan.
Investors were also eyeing the latest in the ongoing spat between the US
and Canada after President Donald Trump again threatened to leave Canada out
of a revamped North American Free Trade Agreement.
“In addition to renewed fears over the US-China trade conflict, falls in
Chinese share prices are having a chilling effect on investor sentiment,”
Yoshihiro Ito, chief strategist at Okasan Online Securities, said in a
commentary.
The dollar fetched 111.48 yen in Asian trade, against 111.45 yen in New
York late Tuesday.
Talks with Ottawa are set to resume in Washington on Wednesday to try to
salvage the three-nation NAFTA, although Trump has said he could proceed with
Mexico alone.
Analysts also are monitoring the state of trade relations between
Washington and Beijing, with the possibility of a new wave of punitive
tariffs hitting as soon as this week.
In Tokyo, China-linked shares were among losers, with construction machine
maker Komatsu dropping 3.93 percent to 3,025 yen and industrial robots maker
Fanuc down 0.65 percent at 21,255 yen.
Separately, automaker Toyota was down 0.76 percent to 6721 yen after it
announced it was recalling over a million hybrid vehicles because of a fire
risk.
BSS/AFP/HR/1300