Japan share market finished session lower on Friday, 23 April 2021, as a resurgence of COVID-19 cases sapped appetite for stocks with data reports President Joe Biden planned to almost double the capital gains tax adding to the grim mood. Meanwhile, sentiments dampened further after the internal affairs ministry data showed Japan's core consumer price index that excludes fresh food was down 0.1 per cent in March year-on-year, the eighth consecutive monthly decline.
At closing bell, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average dropped 167.54 points, or 0.57%, to 29,020.63. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange fell 7.52 points, or 0.39%, to 1,914.98.
Total 22 sub-indexes of the 33 sector sub-indexes on the Tokyo exchange traded lower, with Iron & Steel, Machinery, Oil & Coal Products, Nonferrous Metals, Metal Products, Transportation Equipment, and Mining issues being notable losers, while Air Transportation, Land Transportation, Rubber Products, and Real Estate issues were notable gainers.
Tokyo stocks opened lower after Wall Street tumbled overnight following reports the US President Joe Biden administration is considering a tax hike on the wealthy.
The Japanese government issued a state of emergency over the novel coronavirus for Tokyo and three western prefectures for a period from Sunday to May 11. The government is expected to make a final decision on later on Friday on the emergency declaration set to cover Tokyo as well as Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo prefectures where coronavirus cases are surging.
Nidec shares dropped after electronic parts maker forecasted operating profit of 180 billion yen for the current fiscal year to March, against market estimate of 198.6 billion yen.
ECONOMIC NEWS: Japan Manufacturing Sector Expands Further In April-Japan manufacturing sector continued to pick up steam with a manufacturing PMI score of 59.6 in April, flash estimate from Jibun bank revealed on Friday. That's up from 53.3 in March and it moves further above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.
Individually, both output and new orders expanded at their fastest rate since April 2018, while new export orders also accelerated. Business sentiment improved in April, marking the 11th straight month of optimism among Japanese manufacturers. Also, the services index improved to 48.3 in April from 46.5 in March and the composite index climbed to 50.2 in April from 49.9 in March.
Japan Consumer Prices Down 0.2% On Year In March-Japan consumer prices were down 0.2% on year in March, following the 0.4% contraction in February, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said on Friday. Core CPI, which excludes volatile food prices, was down 0.1% on year following the 0.4% decline in the previous month. Individually, prices were up for housing, furniture, clothing and recreation, while they were lower for food, fuel, medical care and education. On a monthly basis, overall inflation and core CPI were both up a seasonally adjusted 0.2%.
CURRENCY NEWS: The Japanese yen traded at 107.91 per dollar, still stronger than levels above 108.4 against the greenback seen earlier this week.
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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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