Japanese stocks mixed, dollar higher vs yen
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TOKYO Japanese stocks were mixed Tuesday amid investor disappointment that more companies haven’t raised their profit forecasts during earnings season. Worries about slower growth in the U.S. also weighed on sentiment. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index rose 47.54 points, or 0.29 percent, to finish at 16,399.39 points, after plunging 1.9 percent Monday. But the broader Topix index, which includes all shares on the exchange’s first section, fell 3.23 points, or 0.20 percent, to 1,617.42 points. With earnings season in full-swing, the market seems disappointed that more Japanese companies haven’t revised upward their earnings forecasts for the full fiscal year through March. Machinery stocks and some electronics advanced, with Fanuc Ltd. gaining 6.17 percent to 10,150 yen (US$86.75) and Toshiba Machine Co. jumping 2.82 percent to 1,056 yen (US$9.03). Sony Corp. added 0.21 percent to 4,850 yen (US$41.45). Softbank Corp. dropped 2.85 percent to 2,560 yen (US$21.88) after the Internet services company is reportedly now under investigation by Japan’s anti-monopoly watchdog over possible advertising law violations. Tokyo-based Softbank aggressively slashed its prices last week to undercut rivals, only to halt accepting new customers over the weekend when its computer system couldn’t handle the barrage of new applications. The rush of applications came just days after the arrival of number portability in Japan, a system that allows people keep the same numbers when they switch carriers. In currencies, the U.S. dollar was trading at 117.74 yen on the Tokyo foreign exchange market at 5 p.m. (0800 GMT) Tuesday, up from 117.41 yen from late Monday in New York. The euro fell to US$1.2699, from US$1.2729. The yield on Japan’s 10-year government bond was unchanged from Monday’s finish of 1.7150 percent. The price stayed at 99.87. |