Key Points:
- Japan stocks closed lower, influenced by losses in the Paper & Pulp, Pharmaceutical, and Retail sectors. The Nikkei 225 index declined by 0.49%.
- Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. (TYO:9531), Japan Steel Works Ltd. (TYO:5631), and Teijin Ltd. (TYO:3401) were among the best performers.
- IHI Corp. (TYO:7013), Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (TYO:4519), and CyberAgent Inc. (TYO:4751) were the worst performers on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
- Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. reached 5-year highs during the session, while Japan Steel Works Ltd. hit 52-week highs. Nikkei Volatility increased by 0.35.
Japan stocks closed lower on Wednesday, driven by losses in the Paper & pulp, Pharmaceutical Industry, and Retail sectors. At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index declined 0.48% or 191.32 to 39,581.81.
The best performers of the session on the Nikkei 225 included Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. (TYO:9531), which rose by 5.12% or 182.00 points to trade at 3,739.00 at the close. Similarly, Japan Steel Works Ltd. (TYO:5631) added 4.03% or 145.00 points to end at 3,746.00, and Teijin Ltd. (TYO:3401) was up 3.81% or 55.00 points to 1,500.00 in late trade.
Conversely, the session’s worst performers included IHI Corp. (TYO:7013), which fell by 5.44% or 216.00 points to trade at 3,758.00 at the close. Additionally, Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (TYO:4519) declined by 3.00% or 162.00 points to end at 5,236.00, and CyberAgent Inc. (TYO:4751) was down by 2.75% or 30.00 points to 1,062.00.
Rising stocks slightly outnumbered declining ones on the Tokyo Stock Exchange by 1904 to 1697, with 270 ending unchanged. Notably, shares in Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. (TYO:9531) rose to 5-year highs during the session. Similarly, shares in Japan Steel Works Ltd. (TYO:5631) also reached 52-week highs. The Nikkei Volatility measures the implied volatility of Nikkei 225 options, increased by 0.35 to 21.47.
In commodities trading, crude oil for May delivery saw a modest increase of 0.33% or 0.28 to $85.51 a barrel. Brent oil for delivery in June rose by 0.31% or 0.28 to hit $89.70 a barrel, while the June Gold Futures contract rose by 0.59% or 13.95 to trade at $2,376.35 a troy ounce.
Currency markets saw slight movements, with USD/JPY up by 0.02% to 151.80, while EUR/JPY fell by 0.05% to 164.70. The US Dollar Index Futures remained unchanged at 103.93.
