Nikkei Average.

38221.16　-127.90

TOPIX

2681.30　-5.98

Summary of the start of the afternoon session

In the afternoon session, the Nikkei Average started down 127.90 yen from the previous day at 38,221.16 yen, slightly reducing its decline from the morning close of 38,193.01 yen. During lunch time, Nikkei 225 futures traded in a strong range of 38,160 to 38,260 yen. The dollar-yen exchange rate was at 150.30-40 yen per dollar, appreciating about 60 sen since around 9 AM. In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index began with a slight decrease but has since shown robust movement, up about 1.1%, while the Hong Kong Hang Seng Index is showing solid support at lower levels, rising about 0.4%. In the afternoon session of the Tokyo market, buying started to take precedence compared to the morning closing. The fact that the morning Nikkei Average showed hesitation to decline near the 38,000 yen mark, which is considered a support level, seems to have reassured the market. On the other hand, the shift towards a stronger yen and weaker dollar compared to the morning seems to be weighing on stock prices.

In the sector, transportation equipment, machinery, and precision instruments have seen the highest declines, while electric and gas utilities, textiles & apparels, and the insurance industry have experienced the highest increases. In the top trading volume on the Tokyo Stock Exchange main board, stocks such as Sakura <3778>, DeNA <2432>, Disco <6146>, Nissan <7201>, Tokyo Metro <9023>, Mitsui E&S <7003>, Fanuc Corp <6954>, Denso <6902>, Toyota <7203>, and Kasumigaseki Capital <3498> have decreased. On the other hand, Sanrio <8136>, Rakuten Bank <5838>, Dai-ichi Life HD <8750>, Nitori HD <9843>, Furukawa Electric <5801>, Tokyo Gas <9531>, Kansai Electric <9503>, KOKUSAI <6525>, Mizuho <8411>, and Recruit HD <6098> have increased.