Japan Market falls amid US political uncertainty

Headline indices of the Japan share market closed lower on Wednesday, 25 September 2019, as risk aversion selloff triggered on tracing soft lead from Wall Street overnight after disappointing US economic data and on prospects of prolonged political uncertainty in the world's largest economy after US lawmakers called for an impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump. Meanwhile, higher yen against greenback also weighed on the market. Around late afternoon, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average declined 78.69 points, or 0.36%, to 22,020.15, while the broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange shed 2.86 points, or 0.18%, at 1,620.08.

Total 20 out of 33 industry category of Topix index declined into negative territory, with Machinery, Securities & Commodities Futures, Pulp & Paper, Oil & Coal Products, and Mining issues being notable losers, while Electric Power & Gas, Air Transportation, Pharmaceutical, and Real Estate issues were notable gainers.

 

U.S. shares slipped in volatile trade overnight, after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced a formal impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. The S&P 500 fell 0.8% to 2,966.60. The Nasdaq Composite was lower by 1.5% at 7,993.63. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 142.22 points at 26,807.77.

Shares of oil and coal product issue declined after crude oil prices fell for a second day on Wednesday on worries about falling fuel demand after Trump's comments doused optimism over China-U.S. trade talks and reignited concerns on global economic growth.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Japan Producer Prices Unchanged In August -- Japan producer prices were unchanged in August, the Bank of Japan said on Wednesday, following the upwardly revised 0.2% increase in July (originally flat). On a yearly basis, producer prices were up 0.6% following an upward revision from 0.5%.

CURRENCY NEWS: The Japanese yen, often viewed as a safe-haven currency in times of uncertainty, appreciated against greenback on Wednesday. The Japanese yen traded at 107.30 against the dollar after strengthening from levels above 107.5 in the previous session.

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