Japan: Stocks fall on profit booking

Japan share market finished session lower on Tuesday, 02 March 2021, as investors booked part of yesterday gains amid a lack of fresh incentives. At closing bell, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average declined 255.33 points, or 0.86%, to 29,408.17. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange dropped 7.63 points, or 0.4%, to 1,894.85.

Stocks opened higher, but quickly lost momentum and extended losses in the afternoon, as the lack of additional trading cues prompted investors to lock in recent gains after the Nikkei and Topix indexes both increased by more than 2% on Monday.

Wood products supplier Sumitomo Forestry was among major victims of profit-taking. Z Holdings, the parent of internet service provider Yahoo Japan, plummeted 4.82% after merging with messaging app provider Line Corp. on Monday.

Meanwhile, chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron declined 0.7% while Fast Retailing, the operator of the Uniqlo casual clothing chain, fell 2.9%.

In economic news: Japan Unemployment Rate Unchanged At 2.9% In January- Japan unemployment rate came in at a seasonally adjusted 2.9% in January, the Ministry of Communications and Internal Affairs said on Tuesday that was unchanged from the December reading. The jobs-to-applicant ratio came in at 1.10. The participation rate was 61.8%, down from 62% a month earlier.

CURRENCY NEWS: The Japanese yen traded at 106.85 per dollar, still weaker than levels below 105.7 against the greenback seen last week.

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