Tokyo Stocks Open Lower Ahead Of Long Weekend

On Friday, Tokyo's stocks opened lower in prudent trade, ahead of a long weekend, with continued concern about increasing coronavirus cases.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index decreased by 0.60 percent or 152.94 points at 25.481.40 in early trading, while the wider Topix index fell by 0.38 percent or 6.50 points to 1.719.91, reports AFP.

“Trade is seen dominated by a wait-and-see attitude ahead of three days of holidays, after modest gains in the US market,” senior market analyst Toshiyuki Kanayama of Monex said in a commentary.

Wall Street's stocks broke a two-session skid as optimism over revived US stimulus talks countered fear over higher coronavirus cases.

But the Dow Jones Industrial Average just added 0.2% to 29,483.23, after several scholarships in other parts of the world ended in negative territory due to worries about coronavirus.

The subdued trade in Tokyo comes a day after Japan’s prime minister said the country is on “maximum alert” after logging a record number of daily coronavirus infections, though no immediate restrictions are planned.

Among the major shares in Tokyo, Uniqlo casual wear operator Quick Retailing was down 3.37 percent to 81,280 yen, Sony was down 1.17 percent to 9,141 yen, and chip testing equipment manufacturer Advantest was down 0.99 percent to 6,970 yen.

The dollar earned 103.79 yen in early Asian trade, against 103.72 yen in New York late Thursday.

Japan’s core consumer price index, which excludes fresh food, was down 0.7 percent year-on-year in October, according to data released by the internal affairs ministry before the opening bell.

The figure was in line with market expectations.