Japan Stocks Close Lower; Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Leads Gainers
Tokyo, Japan – The Japanese stock market closed slightly lower on Monday, with the benchmark Nikkei 225 dropping 0.08%. Losses in the technology and industrial sectors weighed on the market sentiment.
Among the top performers, Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding saw its shares rise by 12.21%, reaching their highest level in three years. Aozora Bank and Obayashi Corp also recorded gains of 5.64% and 5.49% respectively, contributing to the slight upward momentum.
On the flip side, Recruit Holdings and Konica Minolta were among the worst performers, with their shares declining by 3.25% and 3.19% respectively. Advantest Corp also experienced a 3.19% drop in its stock price.
At the close of trading, there were more rising stocks than declining ones, with 2928 gainers, 818 losers, and 141 unchanged stocks on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
In other market news, the implied volatility index for Nikkei 225 options, known as the VIX, rose by 10.32% to reach 21.60, indicating increased uncertainty among market participants.
Crude oil prices saw a slight decline, with April delivery down 0.73% to $77.89 a barrel. Similarly, Brent oil for April delivery fell by 0.71% to hit $82.88 a barrel. However, gold futures rose by 0.44% to trade at $2,033.05 an ounce.
The currency market also saw some movements, with the USD/JPY pair down 0.13% to 150.01, while the EUR/JPY pair rose marginally by 0.02% to 161.74.
The US Dollar Index Futures, which measures the value of the dollar against a basket of major currencies, was down 0.06% at 104.12.
Overall, the Japanese stock market ended the day on a slightly negative note, but with some notable gainers in the engineering and shipbuilding sectors. Investors will continue to closely monitor market developments and global economic indicators for their investment decisions.
Analyst comment
Neutral news.
As an analyst, the market is likely to experience slight volatility in the coming days due to mixed performance. Investors should monitor economic indicators and market developments for investment decisions.
