Tokyo Shares Open Lower

TOKYO, , (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 28th Dec, 2016 ) - Tokyo shares opened lower on Wednesday in thin holiday trading, with Toshiba nosediving 20 percent after the firm said it might book a massive one-time loss.

Tokyo investors adjusted positions as they prepared to close out the year on Friday, while foreign investors returned from holidays, sending the Nasdaq to a record finish and the Dow Jones industrial Average in striking distance of 20,000 points.

Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei 225 index eased 0.12 percent, or 22.93 points, to 19,380.13 in early deals. The broader Topix index of all first-section issues inched down 0.09 percent, or 1.44 points, to 1,534.78.

Shares in Toshiba fell to their daily limit after the troubled conglomerate announced Tuesday it may book a one-off loss worth several billion Dollars over US subsidiary Westinghouse's acquisition of a nuclear service company.

Toshiba shares plunged 20.42 percent to 311.6 roughly 30 minutes after the market opened. Shortly before trading began, the Japanese government said the nation's industrial production rose 1.5 percent in November from the previous month, slightly below the 1.7 percent gain in a forecast of analysts by Bloomberg news.

Output was "picking up," said the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry in a statement. "Overseas demand, including from developing nations, is recovering and production is growing to meet their consumption needs," Takeshi Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute, told Bloomberg News.

In currencies, the Dollar stood at 117.58 yen, rising from 117.27 Yen in Tokyo Tuesday. Markets reopened in the New York on Tuesday with the Dow Jones Industrial Average adding 0.1 percent at 19,945.04, while the broad-based S&P 500 climbed 0.2 percent to 2,268.88.