Japan Nikkei gains 0.2%

Headline indices of the Japan share market were tad higher after recouping initial losses on Wednesday, 10 October 2018, on the back of strength in defensive shares amid looming uncertainty over a slate of issues, including the intensifying Sino-US trade dispute and Italy's budget plans offset weakness in China-related firms. At closing bell, the 225-issue Nikkei index added 36.65 points, or 0.16%, at 23,506.04. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange rose 2.74 points, or 0.16%, to 1,763.86.

Shares of utility sector advanced on bargain hunting. Tokyo Gas jumped 1.5% and Chubu Electric Power gained 1.3%.

Shares of land transport sector inclined after it fell to a three-week low on Tuesday. West Japan Railway Co gained 1.1% and Central Japan Railway Co rallied 1.6%.

Shares of firms with large exposure to China continued to slide. Hitachi Construction Machinery declined 1.0% and Fanuc skidded 1.6%.

Index-heavyweight SoftBank Group Corp tumbled 3.5% after reports that the technology conglomerate is in talks to take a majority stake in shared office space provider WeWork Cos. The investment could be between $15 billion and $20 billion and would likely come from SoftBank's Vision Fund.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Japan Core Machine Orders Spike 6.8% On Month In August-- Japan total value of core machine orders jumped a seasonally adjusted 6.8 percent on month in August, worth 981.5 billion yen, the Cabinet Office said on Wednesday, following the 11.0 percent spike in July. On a yearly basis, core machine orders jumped 12.6 percent after soaring 13.9 percent in the previous month.

CURRENCY NEWS: Japanese yen appreciated around the 113 yen line against greenback on Wednesday, on demand for safe haven currency amid looming uncertainty over a slate of issues, including the intensifying Sino-US trade dispute and Italy's budget plans. The dollar was quoted at 113.04-05 yen compared with 112.91-113.01 yen in New York and 113.30-32 yen on Tuesday in Tokyo. The euro, meanwhile, fetched 130.03-07 yen against 129.77-87 yen in New York and 130.00-04 yen in Tuesday trade in Tokyo.

OFFSHORE MARKET NEWS, US stock market closed mixed on Tuesday, as investors worried about global growth prospects. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 56.21 points or 0.2% to 26,430.57 and the S&P 500 edged down 4.09 points or 0.1% to 2,880.34. The tech-heavy Nasdaq inched up 2.07 points to 7,738.02

The major European markets ended higher on Tuesday. The German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index rose by 0.3% and 0.4%, respectively. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index inched up by 0.1%.

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