Nikkei Plunges 5%

Hiruki Nakamura
30 May, 2013
New York City

The Nikkei index plunged 5% and the Topix index dropped 3.8% as investors feared market surge may have been overdone. The yen eased and electronics exporters and automakers led the decliners. Fast Retailing plunged 11%.

[R]5:30 PM Tokyo – The Nikkei index plunged 5% and the Topix index dropped 3.8% as investors feared market surge may have been overdone. The yen eased and electronics exporters and automakers led the decliners. Fast Retailing plunged 11%.[/R]

Markets in Tokyo plunge and extend losses in major indexes from the peak reached on May 22.

The Nikkei index dropped 5% and extended losses from the peak to 11% and the Topix index fell 3.8% and dropped more than 10%.

The deep and liquid second largest market in the world is not supposed to be this volatile and choppy. But market indexes have volatile in the last two weeks as investors fear the recent surge may have been overdone and fear early withdrawal of monetary stimulus in the U.S.

The two market indexes are still up more than 30% for the year so far but are likely to close down 2% in the month, the first monthly decline in nine months.

The yen edged higher to 100.81 against one dollar.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average plunged 737.43 or 5.2% to 13,589.03 and the broader Topix Index declined 44.45 or 3.8% to 1,134.42.

All but two stocks in Nikkei closed lower.

Stocks in Review

Toyota Motor Corp dropped 140 yen to 6,060 yen and Honda Motor Co. slumped 135 yen to 3,875 yen and Nissan Motor Co Ltd slipped 14 yen to 1,120 yen.

Sony declined 59 yen to 2,007. Canon Inc fell 70 yen to 3,600 yen and Nikon slid 24 yen to 2,694 yen.

Fanuc Corp plummeted 630 yen or 4.1% to 14,610 yen Softbank Corp plunged 230 yen or 4.3% to 5,090 yen.

Seven & I Holdings Co declined 190 yen or 5.2% to 3,495 yen. Fast Retailing Co. tumbled 4,150 yen or 11.1% to 33,200 yen.

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group fell 19 yen to 595 yen and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group dropped 155 yen to 4,040 yen.

Inpex Corporation slid 0.8% after the Japan based oil and gas explorer reached an agreement with Russia based oil explorer OAO Rosneft Oil Company to jointly explore oil and gas blocks off the coast of eastern Siberia.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings, Inc. declined 32 yen or 7% to 424 yen after the financial services provider plan to raise 94 billion yen or $932 million for strategic investments and expansion.