From Japan Nikkei Stocks fell Thursday, hurt by a stronger yen and losses in semiconductor-related stocks, as investors awaited U.S. nonfarm payrolls data due Friday to gauge the strength of the world’s largest economy.
He Nikkei The N225 index was down 0.35 percent at 36,917.44 at midday, after falling more than 1 percent earlier in the session. The benchmark index was headed for a third straight session of declines.
The broader Topix index .TOPX recouped early losses to end the morning session up 0.39 percent at 2,643.83.
“The jobs data released this week has not really calmed concerns about the US economy and there is a slight bias to expect the first Fed rate cut to be larger in magnitude,” making dollar/yen prone to further declines, said Charu Chanana, global market strategist and head of FX strategy at Saxo.
“This could further take some of the speculative froth off Japanese stocks.”
The yen rose 0.26 percent to 143.56 per dollar in morning trading before easing off, and has already gained nearly 2 percent for the week so far. FRX/
U.S. stocks closed mixed on Wednesday. Shares of chip star Nvidia NVDA.O, whose market value suffered a massive $279 billion drop on Tuesday, closed down 1.7 percent.
In Japan, shares of chip giants Tokyo Electron 8035.T and Advantest 6857.T fell 2.5% and 2.1% respectively. Advantest counts Nvidia among its clients.
Renesas Electronics 6723.T fell 3.6 percent and became the market’s biggest percentage loser. Nikkei.
Among individual stocks, Nippon Steel5401.T recouped early losses and rose 1.4 percent. Sources told Reuters on Wednesday that U.S. President Joe Biden was close to blocking Nippon Steel’s acquisition of US Steel XN over national security risks.
Nikkei Heavyweight Fast Retailing 9983.T fell 3.1 percent, dragging the index further down.
Disclaimer:
The information contained in this post is for general information purposes only. We make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the post for any purpose.
We respect the intellectual property rights of content creators. If you are the owner of any material featured on our website and have concerns about its use, please contact us. We are committed to addressing any copyright issues promptly and will remove any material within 2 days of receiving a request from the rightful owner.