Tokyo Stocks Open Lower Extending US Falls Tokyo Stocks Open Lower

Umer Jamshaid Published January 20, 2023 | 08:10 AM

Tokyo, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 20th Jan, 2023 ) :Tokyo stocks opened lower on Friday, extending falls on Wall Street, as worries over a recession lingered after a top Federal Reserve official pledged a tough line on inflation.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 0.32 percent, or 83.27 points, at 26,321.96 in early trade, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.19 percent, or 3.62 points, to 1,912.00.

The Dollar fetched 128.53 Yen in early Asian trade, up from 128.40 yen in New York and 127.93 yen in Tokyo on Thursday.

"Japanese shares are seen continuing the declining trend in the US market," Mizuho Securities said in a note.

Overnight, all three major US indices dropped after losing more than one percent in the previous session following lacklustre retail sales data that underscored the risk of a downturn in the world's biggest economy.

The US declines came as the yield on the 10-year US Treasury note pushed higher, underscoring worries that the Fed may not be close to pivoting from its tough stance on inflation.

Fed Vice Chair Lael Brainard vowed to "stay the course", according to prepared remarks for an event in Chicago.

"Even with the recent moderation, inflation remains high, and policy will need to be sufficiently restrictive for some time," she said, in a remark seen as suggesting rates will have to stay high for a while.

In Tokyo, Sony Group was down 0.22 percent at 11,355 yen, Panasonic was down 0.35 percent at 1,131.5 yen, and SoftBank Group was down 0.49 percent at 5,846 yen.

Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing was off 0.24 percent at 74,560 yen.

Nippon Steel was up 0.80 percent at 2,575.5 yen, shipping firm Mitsui O.S.K. Lines was up 1.07 percent at 3,320 yen, and airline ANA Holdings was up 1.11 percent at 2,832.5 yen.

Japan's consumer prices rose four percent in December from a year earlier, a level not seen since December 1981, fuelled in part by higher energy bills, government data showed ahead of the opening bell.