Japan Nikkei rises 1.8%

Headline indices of the Japan share market were higher on the final trading day of month, Wednesday, 31 October 2018, as investors continued hunting for beaten down stocks on the back of positive lead from Wall Street overnight, yen depreciation to lower 113 zone against greenback, and solid domestic corporate earnings reports. Total 29 issues of the TSE33 issues inclined, while remaining 4 issues were in red, with shares in Electric Appliances, Services, Precision Instruments, Information & Communication, and Air Transportation issues being notable gainers, while Iron & Steel, Warehousing & Harbor Transportation Services and Electric Power & Gas issues were notable losers. In late afternoon trades, the 225-issue Nikkei index inclined 379.12 points, or 1.8%, at 21,836.41. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange added 26.31 points, or 1.6%, to 1,637.77.

ECONOMIC NEWS: The Bank of Japan kept monetary policy steady on Wednesday and slightly trimmed its inflation forecasts as global trade frictions clouded the outlook, reinforcing views the central bank is in no rush to trim its massive stimulus program. the BOJ maintained a pledge to guide short-term interest rates at minus 0.1% and long-term rates around zero% by a 7-2 vote. In the quarterly report, the central bank cut its core consumer inflation forecast for the current fiscal year ending in March 2019 to 0.9% from 1.1% three months ago.

Japan industrial output falls in Sept-- Japan's industrial output dropped 1.1% in September from a month earlier, according to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), as a series of typhoons and earthquakes disrupted production and a trade war between the United States and China weighed on exports, clouding the country's economic outlook. The index of production at factories and mines stood at a preliminary 101.4 against the 2010 base of 100. This compares to a revised 0.2% increase in August on a seasonally adjusted basis. The index of industrial shipments dropped 3.0% to 98.5 and that of inventories was up 2.3% at 113.3, the ministry's data showed. The ministry's basic assessment was kept unchanged from a month earlier and stated that industrial production is "picking up slowly, but shows some signs of weakness." Looking ahead, manufactures surveyed by METI said they expect output in October to increase 6.0% and then edge 0.8% lower in November.

CURRENCY NEWS: Japanese yen, widely viewed as a safe haven currency, depreciated in the lower 113 zone against greenback on Wednesday, as traders bet on the relative out performance of the U.S. economy and continued rate increases by the Federal Reserve. The dollar was quoted at 113.05-09 yen compared with 113.08-18 yen in New York and 112.80-81 yen on Tuesday in Tokyo. The euro, meanwhile, fetched 128.26-28 yen against 128.26-36 yen in New York and 128.18-22 yen in Monday trade in Tokyo.

OFFSHORE MARKET: US stock market closed higher on Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average soared 431.72 points or 1.8% to 24,874.64, the Nasdaq jumped 111.36 points or 1.6% to 7,161.65 and the S&P 500 surged up 41.38 points or 1.6% to 2,682.63.

European markets ended mixed Tuesday. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index inched up by 0.1%, while the French CAC 40 Index dipped by 0.2% and the German DAX Index fell by 0.4%.

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