Tokyo stocks open flat
Tokyo: Tokyo stocks opened flat Wednesday despite a rally in US shares, with sentiment caught between optimism generated by yen weakness and concerns over President Donald Trump's economic policy agenda.
Wall Street scored solid gains Tuesday to snap an eight-day losing streak for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, as higher oil prices and a record reading on US consumer confidence boosted sentiment.
The dollar traded at 111.14 yen in early Asian trade, unchanged from New York late Tuesday but higher than the mid-110 yen levels in Asia on Tuesday.
A weaker yen helps boost the profitability of exporters and spurs demand for their shares. But investors in Japanese stocks, who often take their cue from US movements, were cautious. "The cheaper yen is positive for Japan stocks," said Mitsushige Akino, an executive officer at Ichiyoshi Investment Management, who also cited the rebound on Wall Street. "But the upward trend is limited amid uncertainties over the Trump administration," he told Bloomberg News, referring to US President Donald Trump's ability to pursue his economic reform plans following his failure last week to pass healthcare legislation.
Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei 225 index rose 0.07 percent, or 13.91 points, to 19,216.78 in the first minute of trading, while the Topix index of all first-section issues was down 0.11 percent, or 1.72 points, at 1,543.11.
Toshiba was up 0.87 percent at 219 yen in early trading amid reports its loss-hit US unit Westinghouse could decide to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy this week in a court-protected restructuring. Kansai Electric Power jumped 8.41 percent to 1,391 yen, after an appeals court overturned a temporary injunction that barred the operation of two of its nuclear reactors.
Wall Street scored solid gains Tuesday to snap an eight-day losing streak for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, as higher oil prices and a record reading on US consumer confidence boosted sentiment.
The dollar traded at 111.14 yen in early Asian trade, unchanged from New York late Tuesday but higher than the mid-110 yen levels in Asia on Tuesday.
A weaker yen helps boost the profitability of exporters and spurs demand for their shares. But investors in Japanese stocks, who often take their cue from US movements, were cautious. "The cheaper yen is positive for Japan stocks," said Mitsushige Akino, an executive officer at Ichiyoshi Investment Management, who also cited the rebound on Wall Street. "But the upward trend is limited amid uncertainties over the Trump administration," he told Bloomberg News, referring to US President Donald Trump's ability to pursue his economic reform plans following his failure last week to pass healthcare legislation.
Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei 225 index rose 0.07 percent, or 13.91 points, to 19,216.78 in the first minute of trading, while the Topix index of all first-section issues was down 0.11 percent, or 1.72 points, at 1,543.11.
Toshiba was up 0.87 percent at 219 yen in early trading amid reports its loss-hit US unit Westinghouse could decide to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy this week in a court-protected restructuring. Kansai Electric Power jumped 8.41 percent to 1,391 yen, after an appeals court overturned a temporary injunction that barred the operation of two of its nuclear reactors.
