EPAUnrest in the financial markets is also visible in Japan
NOS News•today, 09:10•Adjusted today, 11:53
The stock market in Japan has started the week dramatically. The Nikkei index closed at a loss of 12 percent. That was the biggest daily loss since 1987. In response, the AEX in Amsterdam is now more than 3 percent in the red at 849 points. The main index already lost more than 3 percent on Friday. The tech companies ASML, Besi and ASMI in particular are going down further.
The MidKap in Amsterdam lost 2.6 percent this morning to 832.73 points. The stock exchanges in Frankfurt, London and Paris fell up to 3 percent.
The main index in Tokyo fell to its lowest level in seven months today. Japanese export companies such as Toyota were particularly hard hit. The Nikkei lost more than 20 percent of its value in the last three trading days compared to the record level of last month.
The signs are also turning red on other stock exchanges. In Seoul, trading was even temporarily halted and the Kospi fell 9 percent in the meantime. The stock exchange in Sydney fell 3.6 percent and the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong lost 2.6 percent.
ASML’s major loss
After the heavy price losses last Friday, the tech companies ASML, Besi and ASMI fell sharply again this morning on the Amsterdam stock exchange. The red figures this morning rose to 12 percent. The banks are also having to pay the price for fear of a recession. ING and ABN Amro lost 7 and 4 percent. After all, in the event of a recession, there is a chance that customers will no longer be able to repay their loans.
Since the end of last week, investors have been fearing a recession in the US. According to them, this is because the US Federal Reserve waited too long to lower interest rates and is now lagging behind.
On Friday, it emerged that employment growth in the United States slowed significantly in July, adding to concerns about a slowdown in the world’s largest economy and the U.S. labor market.
Japan correspondent Anoma van der Veere:
“I see a push notification on my phone every now and then. They are not used to these numbers in Japan. With this nosedive – 4400 points off – there is a lot of fear of a recession. Everyone thinks back to that time in the late 80s, when a years-long crisis also started with a crash on the stock market.
The Japanese government, which usually keeps aloof, has also responded. The chief of staff said that the price drops are seen as an urgent problem and the government says it will take measures if necessary. In this way they are trying to calm people down a bit.”
