Japan Nikkei falls on weak offshore lead, spike in coronavirus cases

Japan share market slipped into negative territory after opening higher on Friday, 17 July 2020, as investors reacted to weak cues from Wall Street overnight and worries about the rising number of coronavirus cases in Tokyo. However, market losses capped after the U.S. dollar recovered to the lower 107 yen zone and on expectations of more stimulus measures to aid a global economic recovery.

Around late afternoon, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average dropped 102.90 points, or 0.45%, to 22,667.47. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange slipped 8.11 points, or 0.51%, at 1,570.95.

Total 26 sub-indices of 33 industry category of Topix index fell into red territory, with Air Transportation, Real Estate, Iron & Steel, Marine Transportation, Pulp & Paper, and Nonferrous Metals issues being notable losers, while Oil & Coal Products, Electric Power & Gas, Mining, and Pharmaceutical issues were notable gainers.

Worries about the rising number of coronavirus cases in Tokyo weighed on sentiment. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government reported an all-time high of 286 new coronavirus cases on Thursday. CURRENCY: The Japanese yen traded at 107.27 per dollar, in a turbulent trading week that has seen the currency going from levels around 107.4 to below 106.8 against the greenback.

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