TOKYO, Dec 24 – Japanese equities slumped on Wednesday under the weight of a strengthening yen, sending the Nikkei share average to its first loss in four sessions despite robust gains for chip stocks.
The tech-heavy Nikkei ended the day down 0.1% at 50,344.10, reversing an earlier advance.
The broader Topix slid 0.5% to 3,407.37.
A stronger yen slashes the value of offshare sales for the country’s many heavyweight exporters, with automakers notable underperformers on the day.
Toyota sank 1.8%, and Subaru lost 1.2%. Electronics giants Sony and Nintendo declined 1.9% and 0.8%, respectively.
Financial firms were also standout losers, as they gave back some of the big gains that followed the Bank of Japan’s decision to raise interest rates to a three-decade high on Friday. Higher interest rates boost earnings from lending and fixed income holdings.
Insurers lost 1.6% as a group, while banks dropped 1%.
The Nikkei fell despite a big boost from heavily weighted semiconductor equipment maker Advantest, which added 127 points to the index with a 2.5% jump.
Tokyo Electron rose 0.7%, while smaller rival Screen Holdings surged 10% to be the Nikkei’s biggest percentage gainer after Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities raised its price target on the stock.
Chip stocks were supported by gains for Wall Street peers overnight, with the Philadelphia SE semiconductor index climbing 0.5% to mark a fourth straight session of gains. The S&P 500 notched a record high.
“Japanese chip-related shares are tracking U.S. peers and lifting the overall market,” and the Nikkei’s outperformance of the Topix is evidence of that, said Wataru Akiyama, a strategist at Nomura Securities.
But with trading thinned by holidays in most overseas markets to end the week, big moves in Japanese equities are unlikely, he said.
Japanese markets are open Thursday and Friday as usual.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
