Tokyo Stocks Open Lower

AFP/APP

Tokyo: Tokyo stocks opened lower on Monday as a higher yen and falls in two of the three main US indexes weighed on the market.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 1.07 percent, or 413.40 points, at 38,401.16 in early trade, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.87 percent, or 24.02 points, to 2,722.59.

The dollar stood at 157.49 yen in early Asian trade, compared to 157.37 yen in New York — and down from 158.15 yen late Friday in Tokyo.

Traders bought the yen to limit risks as worries over France’s looming snap election sent Paris stocks down, analysts said.

On Friday in New York, the blue-chip Dow ended down 0.2 percent and the broad-based S&P 500 fell less than 0.1 percent.

The tech-rich Nasdaq saw a modest gain of just over 0.1 percent and finished the day at a new record.

“The Japanese market is expected to start lower after the Dow and S&P 500 fell on Wall Street, while the yen is slightly higher,” senior market analyst Toshiyuki Kanayama of brokerage Monex said.

Suzuki lost 4.91 percent to 1,764 yen after a report said the automaker will invest in self-driving technology for smaller cars.

Other carmakers were also lower, with Mazda trading down 3.81 percent at 1,439 yen, Toyota down 2.98 percent at 3,023 yen, and Honda off 2.92 percent at 1,646 yen.

Among other major shares, Sony Group was down 2.69 percent at 12,685 yen. Sumitomo Realty & Development was 3.51 percent lower at 4,731 yen, and oil refiner and retailer Idemitsu Kosan was off 3.14 percent at 1,065.5 yen.