Nikkei at 7-Month High as Yen Trades Near 8-Month Low

Nigel Thomas
26 Nov, 2012
New York City

Stocks in Tokyo closed higher and the yen traded near 8-month low on the rising speculation that the central bank may be forced to take additional measures to stimulate the economy and weaken the yen. Fitch lowered credit rating of Panasonic and Sony to junk level.

[R]7:00 PM Tokyo – Stocks in Tokyo closed higher and the yen traded near 8-month low on the rising speculation that the central bank may be forced to take additional measures to stimulate the economy and weaken the yen. Fitch lowered credit rating of Panasonic and Sony to junk level.[/R]

Stocks in Tokyo edged higher and the Nikkei index closed at a 7-month high after the yen weakened against the dollar and the yen.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average advanced 22.14 or 0.2% to 9,388.94 and the broader Topix Index up 3.07 to 779.50.

The yen traded at 82.27 against one dollar, near 8-month low of 82.64.

In Monday’s trading, 2.1 billion shares changed hands worth 1.3 trillion yen.

Foreign investors were net buyers of Japanese stocks for the eleventh day in a row today.

Stocks in Review

Toyota Motor Corp. jumped 60 yen to 3,575 yen and Honda Motor Co. gained 16 yen to 2,766 yen and Nissan Motor Co Ltd increased 18 yen to 806 yen. Mazda Motor Corp slid 1 yen to 129 yen.

Isuzu Motors Ltd down 0.6% to 475 yen

Nippon Steel added 3 yen to 196 yen and JFE Holdings Inc increased 20 yen to 1,306 yen. Tokyo Steel Manufacturing closed unchanged at 311 yen.

Fujikura Ltd gained 1.7% to 241 yen and TDK jumped 75 yen to 3,255 yen. Murata Manufacturing Co climbed 20 yen to 4,595 yen and Meiko Electronics Co Ltd advanced 2.3% or 671 yen.

Shimano Inc increased 50 yen to 5,300 yen.

Oki Electric Industry added 3 yen to 77 yen, Ricoh Co Ltd gained 4 yen to 779 yen, Sony Corp slipped 16 yen to 818 and Seiko Epson Corp up 5 yen to 494 yen. Canon Inc increased 5 yen to 2,917 yen and Nikon decreased 6 yen to 2,171 yen.
Fitch credit rating agency lowered debt ratings of Panasonic and Sony to “junk” level on Friday.

Olympus Corp. slumped 2.2% to 1,389 yen and Nintendo Co. Ltd dropped 30 yen to 10,360 yen, Fujitsu up 1 yen to 305 yen and Pioneer Corp. climbed 8 yen to 203 yen. Sharp Corp slid 1 yen to 170 yen. Panasonic Corp lowered 1 yen at 406 yen.

Fanuc Corp. advanced 40 yen to 14,040 yen and Komatsu Ltd climbed 28 yen to 1,874 yen. Hitachi Construction Machinery Co closed unchanged at 1,456 yen.

Sumitomo Heavy lowered 0.3% to 353 yen.

FamilyMart Co Ltd, the convenience chain operator slipped 10 yen to 3,535 yen and Lawson declined 60 yen to 5,330 yen. Ito En Ltd increased 28 yen to 1,491 yen.

Seven & I Holdings Co gained 14 yen to 2,344 yen.

Yamada Denki plummeted 63 yen to 2,837 yen. Nitori Holdings Co dropped 30 yen to 5,830 yen, apparel retailer Shimamura decreased 80 yen to 8,100 yen and Sagami Co slid 1 yen to 121 yen.

Fast Retailing Co. climbed 170 yen to 18,030 yen and J. Front Retailing Co. Ltd increased 8 yen to 388 yen.

Inpex Corp slipped 0.1% to 455,000 yen, Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. lowered 22 yen to 2,888 yen. Tokyo Electric Power Co, Inc. added 2 yen to 130 yen.

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group up 1 yen to 377 yen and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group gained at 2,588 yen. Nomura Holdings, Inc increased 5 yen to 347 yen.

Japan Airlines Co Ltd climbed 20 yen to 3,560 yen and All Nippon Airways closed unchanged at 177 yen.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd slid 2 yen to 209 yen and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd closed unchanged at 108 yen and Nippon Yusen K.K. added 1 yen to 174 yen.