TOKYO -- Shares of Japanese electronic makers hit a snag a week before their first-quarter earnings results will be released, hurting the rest of the market -- which was already depressed about recent corporate failures.
The
Nikkei 225
index shed 172.08, or 1.0%, to close at 16,811.49, while the
Topix
index, which includes all shares listed on the
Tokyo Stock Exchange's
first section, lost 16.24, or 1.1%, to 1523.43. The
Jasdaq
small-cap index fell 0.24 to 82.16, while the Nikkei
over-the-counter
index ended the day 2.00 lower to 1705.96.
Investors, many of whom are fearful of more bankruptcies in the retail and construction sectors, have stayed on the sidelines for the past month, making the market very illiquid, traders lament. With fears of an interest rate rise as early as mid-August, lethargic trading may continue from some time.
The focus was on electronics makers Friday, as a slew of first-quarter earnings reports are scheduled to hit the market next week. Analysts said they are not expecting stellar numbers to emerge from firms like
Sony
(SNE) - Get Report
, which will release numbers Wednesday. Sony pulled shares down 270 yen, or 2.5%, to 10,680 ($98.40).
Hitachi
(HIT)
lost 26, or 1.9%, to 1319, while
Advantest
shed 90 to 21,400.
Softbank
lost 260, or 2.2%, to 11,840 after local reports said Japan's tax authorities were questioning president Masayoshi Son on suspicion that he failed to report about $830,000 in taxable benefits.
Bucking the trend were
Tokyo Electron
, up 40 to 14,790, and
Hikari Tsushin
, up 830, or 16.1%, to 6000. Investors are hoping Hikari will announce a comprehensive restructuring plan soon.
With dealers worried about the long-term economic scenario in Japan due to bankruptcy fears, the greenback edged higher against the yen, lately fetching 108.54.
A rather
upbeat speech on the likelihood of a soft-landing economic scenario by U.S.
Federal Reserve
Chairman
Alan Greenspan
overnight helped Hong Kong's
Hang Seng
index close up 162.35 at 17,920.86. Property and bank shares powered the market higher, including
Cheung Kong
, up HK$2.00, or 2.0%, to 101.00 ($12.95) and
Sun Hung Kai Properties
(SUHJY)
, up 0.50 to 66.00.
Telecom shares were lower, with
China Mobile
(CHL) - Get Report
shedding 0.50 to 71.75 and
China Unicom
(CHU) - Get Report
losing 0.15 to 20.45.
Elsewhere in Asia, Korea's
Kospi
index gained 4.16 to 783.06 for the day, while Taiwan's
TWSE
index closed down 52.16 to 8167.37.
