Stocks in Japan and Asia Rebounded

123jump.com Staff
15 Apr, 2008
New York City

Stocks in Japan and Asia rebounded on rising energy and metals prices. In Tokyo trading Nikkei 225 increased 0.6% or 73 to 12,990, and the broader Topix Index rose 0.8% to 1,255.97.Corporate bankruptcy filing increased 18% to 11,333 for the year ending in March. New condominiums put up for sale in the Tokyo metropolitan area in March fell for the seventh straight month by 17.8% from a year ago to 4,490 units.

[R]5:00AM New York, 7:00PM Tokyo – Elevated commodities prices lift stocks in the sector. Bankruptcy filings among small companies increase.[/R]

Commodity and retail stocks lift Tokyo[/R]

Stocks in Japan rose lifted by commodity and retail stocks after energy and metal prices increased.

Market sentiment

In Tokyo trading Nikkei 225 increased 0.6% or 73.07 to 12,990.58, and the broader Topix Index rose 0.8% or 9.73 to 1,255.97.

In the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange 7.6 billion shares worth 884 billion yen were traded and in the second section 165 million shares worth 4.6 billion yen changed hands.

Of the Nikkei 225 stocks 131 gained, 80 declined and 14 were unchanged. J Front Retailing led advancers in the Nikkei 225 index shares with a rise of 9.26% followed by Tokyu Land Corp. advancing 8.11% after the number of condominiums up for sale in the Tokyo metropolitan area declined 17.8%.

Rising commodity prices take their toll on small companies

Bloomberg news reported today that Japan’s biggest corporate-credit researcher Teikoku Databank Ltd said the number of companies filing for bankruptcy protection increased 18% to 11,333 in the year ending March 31.

The report noted that failure rate among firms with less than 100 million yen of debt increased 21%.

However companies with less than $10 million of capital, which hires 70% of the workforce, are affected by high commodity prices and restrained consumer spending.

Japan to scrap taxes on overseas funds

The Nikkei news reported today that the government is mulling plans to stop taxing the returns of firms managing the assets of overseas investors in Japan as early as this month.

New condo supply drops 17.8% in March

Kyodo news reported that private research agency Real Estate Economic Institute observed in a report that the number of condominiums put up for sale in the Tokyo metropolitan area in March fell for the seventh straight month by 17.8% from a year ago to 4,490 units.

The institute noted that of all the new condos that were listed for sale in the month under review, 63.5% found buyers, a decline of 15.2% from a year ago but up 5.2% from February.

The average price in Tokyo, Chiba, Kanagawa and Saitama prefectures increased 6.2% from a year ago to 49.98 million yen.

Gainers & Losers

J Front Retailing led gainers in the Nikkei 225 index shares with a rise of 9.26% followed by increases in Tokyu Land Corp. of 8.11%, in JFE Holdings Inc of 6.10%, in Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding of 5.40%, and Sompo Japan Insurance of 5.23%.

Tokyu Land Corp. advanced after prices of new condominiums gained as new condos put up for sale in March fell 17.8%.

Commodity stocks gained as crude oil prices traded near record high of $112 per barrel driven by supply disruptions in Nigeria, U.S. and Mexico and high demand in emerging countries.

Nippon Oil advanced 3.46%, Sumitomo Metal Industries increased 3.23% and Sumitomo Metal Mining gained 4.60%.

Kubota Corp led decliners in the Nikkei 225 index shares with a drop of 4.48% followed by losses in Clarion Co. Ltd of 4.25%, in OKI Electric Industries of 3.88%, in OJI Paper Co of 3.81% and Teijin Ltd of 3.17%.

Nippon Paper Group fell 2.79% and Hokuetsu declined 2.57%.