(RTTNews) – The Japan stock market on Thursday ended the four-day winning streak in which it had climbed more than 860 points or 2.5 percent. The Nikkei 225 now sits just beneath the 38,175-point plateau although it may bounce higher again on Friday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is murky amidst conflicting economic data, trade updates and geopolitical events. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were slightly higher and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.
The Nikkei finished modestly lower on Thursday following losses from the automobile producers, gains from the financials and a mixed picture from the technology companies.
For the day, the index slumped 248.10 points or 0.65 percent to finish at 38,173.09 after trading between 38,102.05 and 38,407.57.
Among the actives, Nissan Motor slipped 0.22 percent, while Mazda Motor advanced 0.91 percent, Toyota Motor retreated 1.49 percent, Honda Motor dropped 0.85 percent, Softbank Group fell 0.25 percent, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial collected 0.38 percent, Mizuho Financial improved 0.86 percent, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial climbed 1.09 percent, Mitsubishi Electric perked 0.12 percent, Sony Group added 0.72 percent, Panasonic Holdings slumped 1.17 percent and Hitachi declined 1.31 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is cautiously optimistic as the major averages opened lower on Thursday before finally ticking up into the green to finish slightly higher.
The Dow climbed 101.85 points or 0.24 percent to finish at 42,967.62, while the NASDAQ added 46.61 points or 0.24 percent to close at 19,662.48 and the S&P 500 rose 23.02 points or 0.38 percent to end at 6,045.26.
The turnaround on Wall Street comes as traders digest the latest U.S. inflation data, with a report from the Labor Department showing producer prices crept up by less than expected in May.
Stocks moved lower earlier in the day due in part to lingering uncertainty about trade amid a lack of details about the U.S.-China trade deal announced on Wednesday.
Crude oil futures showed a modest move back to the downside during trading on Thursday, with profit taking limited by rising tensions between the U.S. and Iran over the latter’s nuclear developments. West Texas Intermediate crude for July delivery eased $0.11 to $68.04 per barrel.
Closer to home, Japan will see final April results for industrial production, capacity utilization and the tertiary industry activity index later today. In March, production was up 0.2 percent on month, while utilization was down 2.4 percent on month and the tertiary index had a reading of 15.80.
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