Tokyo stocks opened lower on Friday as a strong yen weighed on exporters and Wall Street had a mixed performance. The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average hit a tenth consecutive all-time high to break a 30-year record, but the S&P 500 barely rose and the tech-heavy Nasdaq declined.
US stocks have been on a record run since President Donald Trump took office last month, with investors cheered in recent days by hopes the new administration will soon unveil promised tax cuts, reports BSS.
In Asia, the dollar edged up to 112.69 yen from 112.67 yen but was well down from 113.25 yen in Tokyo on Thursday and the 114 yen level seen last week. The yen’s relative strength dented enthusiasm for stocks.
“Buying sentiment is dampened by a strong yen for sure,” Toshikazu Horiuchi, a broker at IwaiCosmo Securities Co, told AFP.
“But selling pressure is not so strong as investors appear to be buying on the dip.”
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index slipped 0.72 percent, or 139.35 points, to 19,232.11 in early trading while the Topix index of all first-section issues was down 0.68 percent, or 10.59 points, at 1,545.66.
A stronger yen hurts the profitability of Japan’s major exporters and tends to dent demand for their shares. Toyota fell 0.83 percent to 6,444 yen in early trading while Panasonic declined 0.19 percent to 1,259 yen.
Nissan lost 0.35 percent to 1,108 yen following a 0.58 percent fall on Thursday after the automaker said its boss Carlos Ghosn would step down as chief executive.
Toshiba rebounded more than six percent after a news report said it may have its US nuclear arm Westinghouse Electric file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
