FX168 Financial News Agency (Asia-Pacific) reported that the Japanese stock market fell on Friday (June 13) as investors sold off risk Assets following Israel's large-scale airstrikes against Iran, raising concerns about geopolitical risks.
At the close, the Nikkei/Yen index fell by 0.89% to 37,834.25 points, reflecting the trend of U.S. stock Futures, but it still rose by 1.14% this week. The broader Tokyo Stock Exchange index fell by 0.95% to 2,756.47 points, but rose by 0.5% this week. #Japanese market#
Of the more than 1,600 Stocks traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's main market, 17% rose, 79% fell, and 2% remained unchanged.
Israel launched airstrikes against Iran on Friday, claiming its targets were nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories, and military commanders, stating that this marks the beginning of a long-term effort to prevent Tehran from developing nuclear weapons.
Naoki Fujiwara, a senior Fund manager at Newgold Asset Management, said: "The market is Selling Stocks cautiously in response to geopolitical risks, but the news has not triggered large-scale sell-offs as investors still wish to monitor further developments of the attacks."
The Energy Sector rose with skyrocketing oil prices. Oil exploration companies rose by 2.77%, making them the best performers among the 33 Industry sub-indices on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. Refining companies rose by 1.61%, and the Utilities Sector rose by 1.17%.
Defense-related Stocks also rose, with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and IHI each rising by 2%.
Chip manufacturing equipment maker Tokyo Electron Ltd. Unsponsored ADR fell by 4.8%, becoming the biggest drag on the Nikkei/Yen index. The owner of the Uniqlo brand, Fast Retailing, fell by 1.61%.
Due to the strengthening of the Yen, exporter stocks fell, with Toyota Motor and Nissan Motor dropping by 2.35% and 1.26% respectively.