The Japanese stock market experienced a modest decline on Tuesday, reversing gains from the previous session. The Nikkei 225 index dipped slightly, hovering just above the 39,000 mark despite positive signals from Wall Street overnight. This downturn was primarily attributed to the weakness observed in leading stocks and some exporters.
As of now, the Nikkei 225 Index has decreased by 146.84 points, or 0.37%, resting at 39,014.50, after reaching a low of 38,995.76 earlier in the day. This comes after a notable rise in Japanese stocks on Monday.
Among the major players, SoftBank Group has seen a nearly 2% decrease, while Fast Retailing, known for operating Uniqlo, is down by almost 1%. In the automotive sector, Honda has made significant gains with an increase of over 15%, whereas Toyota shows a slight rise of 0.2%.
In the technology sector, Advantest is down over 1% with Tokyo Electron slightly declining by 0.1%, whereas Screen Holdings has risen by 0.5%.
The banking sector shows mixed results with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial inching up by 0.2%, and both Mizuho Financial and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial gaining nearly 1% each.
Most major exporters report losses. Panasonic has dropped over 1%, and Mitsubishi Electric saw a reduction of 0.5%, while Canon has recorded a gain of almost 1%. Sony remains unchanged.
In terms of significant declines, Toho has decreased by 5.5%, with Fujikura, DeNA, Furukawa Electric, and Rakuten Group each dropping by more than 3%. Mercari is down nearly 3%.
Conversely, Mitsubishi Motors and Chubu Electric Power have both achieved gains nearing 3%.
On the economic front, the minutes of the Bank of Japan’s Monetary Policy Board meeting from October 30-31 revealed that the Japanese economy is steadily growing and projected to continue above-trend expansion. The BoJ decided to maintain the uncollateralized overnight call rate at approximately 0.25%, its highest since late 2008, having ended its negative interest rate policy in March and increased the benchmark rate in July.
In currency exchange, the U.S. dollar is trading within the lower 157 yen range on Tuesday.
On Wall Street, stocks generally rose throughout Monday’s session, gaining momentum after an initial period of uncertainty. This added to Friday's strong performance and helped counteract the downturn from the previous Wednesday. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 both climbed into positive territory, while the Dow registered a modest increase. The Nasdaq advanced by 192.29 points, or 1%, reaching 19,764.89. The S&P 500 increased by 43.22 points, or 0.7%, to stand at 5,974.07, and the Dow rose by 66.69 points, or 0.2%, to 42,906.95.
In Europe, market outcomes were mixed. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index edged up by 0.2%, while France's CAC 40 Index ended slightly lower and Germany’s DAX Index fell by 0.2%.
Oil prices declined on Monday due to concerns over potential excess supply and the influence of a stronger dollar. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for February fell by $0.26, or 0.3%, settling at $69.20 per barrel.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company -
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