Tokyo Stocks Open Higher On Weaker Yen

Tokyo stocks open higher on weaker yen

Tokyo, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Aug, 2020 ) :Tokyo stocks opened marginally higher on Wednesday, supported by a weaker yen, despite losses on Wall Street on renewed pessimism about a new pandemic aid bill.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.16 percent or 37.32 points at 22,787.56 in early trade, while the broader Topix index climbed 0.38 percent or 5.99 points to 1,591.95.

In New York, all three major indices dropped, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.4 percent, the S&P 500 falling 0.8 percent and the Nasdaq sliding 1.7 percent.

Wall Street tanked in the last hour of the session after Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell poured cold water on prospects for a deal on a new pandemic aid bill.

"US shares declined, but the trend of a weaker Yen will support" the Japanese market, said Yoshihiro Ito, chief strategist at Okasan Online Securities.

The Dollar edged up to 106.56 yen in early Asian trade from 106.50 yen in New York late Tuesday and 106.15 yen in Tokyo.

In Tokyo trading, SoftBank Group dropped 1.03 percent to 6,295 yen after reporting a $12 billion quarterly net profit to June, recovering from eye-watering losses.

Toyota rose 1.25 percent to 7,240 yen while its rival Honda grew 1.40 percent to 2,748.5 yen. Nissan jumped 1.91 percent to 414.1 yen.

Fast Retailing, the parent firm of casual wear brand Uniqlo, was up 0.45 percent to 59,900 yen while Sony slid 0.79 percent to 8,469 yen.