TokioTokyo stocks extended last week’s losses and fell more than 7 percent in morning trading on Monday, weighed down by a rally in the yen and poor U.S. jobs data that sparked fears of a recession.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell as much as 7.03 percent, while the broader Topix index sank as much as 7.49 percent.
The Nikkei later pared its decline to 5.5 percent. South Korean markets were also at the same level, with both indices losing more than 5 percent.
The U.S. labor market slowed more than expected in July, with the unemployment rate at 4.3 percent, the highest since October 2021, according to figures released Friday by the Labor Department.
Meanwhile, the Japanese currency, the yen, strengthened on Monday, breaking through the 145-per-dollar mark for the first time since January, after the Bank of Japan raised interest rates last week.
The US dollar was quoted at 144.77 yen in morning trading on Monday.
The yen hit one of its weakest points since 1986 at the beginning of July, at 162 per dollar.
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– 2024-08-09 05:38:03
