The Nikkei, which had gained nearly 1.6% the previous day, lost 0.76% to 22,770.36 points and the broader Topix index dropped 0.66% to finish at 1,579.06 points.
–
The Tokyo Stock Exchange retreated Thursday despite the rebound in growth in China in the second quarter, Japanese investors having especially retained a new peak in the daily number of coronavirus infections recorded in the Japanese capital.
The Nikkei flagship index, which had gained nearly 1.6% the day before, fell 0.76% to 22,770.36 points and the expanded Topix index dropped 0.66% to end at 1,579.06 points.
More than 280 new Covid-19 cases were due to be confirmed in Tokyo on Thursday, a new 24-hour record for the Japanese capital since the start of the pandemic. New daily records were also recorded in the United States.
“The atmosphere on the market has been clouded by the jump in coronavirus cases in Tokyo,” said Yoshihiro Okumura of Chibagin Asset Management.
In this context, the rise significantly higher than expectations of Chinese GDP in the second quarter (+ 3.2% over one year, + 11.5% compared to the first quarter) did not weigh heavily, especially as some analysts have deemed these figures too good to be true.
On the side of values
JAPAN DISPLAY FLIGHT
The title of the manufacturer of LCD flat screens Japan Display took 8.33% to 52 yen. Its managing director Minoru Kikuoka told the Bloomberg agency that the group was talking with some of its customers to co-invest in the development of new generation OLED (organic light emitting diodes) screens. Japan Display is a major supplier to the American technology giant Apple, which could equip all of its future iPhones with OLED screens, according to media reports.
JAPAN EXCHANGE ACCESSES NIKKEI
The title of the Japanese stock exchange operator Japan Exchange jumped 6.51% to 2,714 yen, after the announcement Wednesday of its entry on the star index Nikkei from July 29. It will replace Sony Financial, which will be removed from listing after its recent 100% takeover by its parent company Sony.
On the currency and oil side
The yen was stable against the dollar around 06:45 GMT, a dollar trading for 106.95 yen, against 106.94 yen Wednesday at 21:00 GMT.
The Japanese currency appreciated against the euro, which was worth 121.87 yen against 122.03 yen the day before.
The euro also weakened against the greenback, at the rate of one euro for 1.1395 dollars against 1.412 dollars Wednesday at 9:00 p.m. GMT.
Oil prices started falling again in Asia on Thursday, after climbing to their highest levels in four months on Wednesday, helped in particular by a sharp decline in crude stocks in the United States.
According to Stephen Innes of AxiCorp, the prices of black gold cashed Thursday the surprise decline of retail sales in China (-1.8% in June on a year), sign that consumption in the second world economy is still far to be recovered from the pandemic.
Around 6:45 GMT the price of a barrel of American crude WTI lost 0.85% to 40.85 dollars and that of a barrel of Brent of the North Sea fell by 0.64% to 43.51 dollars.
–
