Tokyo Closes Higher on G20 Pledge

123jump.com Staff
16 Mar, 2009
New York City

Tokyo shares gained value on Monday, buoyed by prevailing optimism that G20 finance leaders showed readiness to fix the global financial crisis.

[R]5:00AM New York, 7:00PM Tokyo- Tokyo’s new condo offerings fall 27.5% to 2,509 units in February.[/R]

Japan stocks rose 1.8% leveraged by optimism that G20 and central bank governors will ratchet up efforts to forestall a deepening economic recession.

In Tokyo trading Nikkei 225 rose 1.8% or 134.87 to 7,704.15, and the broader Topix Index advanced 2.4% or 17.39 to 741.69.

In the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange 10.3 billion shares valued at 618 billion yen were traded and in the second section 106 million shares worth 1.2 billion yen changed hands.

Of the Nikkei 225 index stocks, 194 gained, 24 declined, and 7 were unchanged. Shinsei Bank Ltd. led gainers in the index shares with a rise of 17.3% followed by Pioneer Corp. gaining 12.8%.

G20 Central Banks to Maintain Expansionary Policies

The G20 finance ministers and central bank governors said in a communiqué on Saturday they will pursue whatever actions are necessary to ensure the soundness of systematically important institutions, reiterating that central banks will maintain expansionary policies ""as long as needed"".

The report notes that governments will use the full range of monetary policy instruments, including unconventional policy instruments to maintain stability.

Immediate steps in the Washington Action Plan have been completed, and the finance ministers and central banks have recommended to the London Summit that an appropriate degree of oversight and regulation be effected for all systematically important financial institutions, markets and instruments.

Japan to Cut Expressway Tolls for 2 years

Japan’s transport ministry was reported to have announced on Friday that expressway toll discounts will be implemented later this month under a supplementary budget designed to prop the troubled economy.

A uniform toll of 1,000 yen will be introduced for passenger cars and motorcycles equipped with electronic toll collection devices traveling on expressways outside of the Tokyo and Osaka metropolitan areas on holidays from March 28.

However, those traveling on expressways in the metropolitan regions will be required to pay the uniform toll twice and a discounted metropolitan expressway toll until April 26.
Drivers on the Tokyo metropolitan expressway system will be allowed to continue for an unlimited distance by paying the uniform 1,000 yen toll and the extra 1,950 yen metropolitan toll on holidays.

In addition, a uniform 1,000 yen toll for holidays will also take effect next Friday on the Tokyo Bay Aqualine bridge-tunnel and the Honshu-Shikoku Bridge Expressway in western Japan.

The transport ministry notes that tolls will be discounted by 30 to 50% for all vehicles with ETC devices on non-metropolitan expressways on weekdays.

Tokyo’s New Condo Offerings Down 27.5% in February

Nikkei News reported today that the Real Estate Economic Institute Co. said the number of new condominiums brought to the market in the Tokyo metropolitan area declined 27.5% to 2,509 units in February.

Gainers & Losers

Shinsei Bank Ltd. led gainers in the Nikkei 225 index shares with a rise of 17.3% followed by increases in Pioneer Corp. of 12.8%, in Tokyu Land Corp. of 11.9%, in Sumitomo Heavy Industries of 8.7%, and Mazda Motor of 8.4%.

Realty stocks increased. Mitsubishi Estate rallied 7.6% and Mitsui Fudosan edged up 7.3%.

JGC led decliners in the Nikkei 225 index shares with a decline of 8.2% followed by losses in Daiichi Sankyo of 5.4%, in Inpex of 4.6%, in Dainippon Sumitomo of 2.9%, and Nippon Oil Corp. of 2.8%.

Nippon Oil and other energy stocks fell after crude oil prices dropped 1.7% to $46.3 per barrel.