TOKYO: Japanese stocks seesawed between gains and losses, sending a measure of short-term volatility to a four-year high.
Itochu Corp. lost 2.4 percent as trading houses declined. Oil explorer Inpex Corp. slumped 2.9 percent as oil dropped below $45 a barrel. Tsumura & Co. jumped 9.4 percent, pushing up a gauge of pharmaceutical stocks. Hankyu Hanshin Holdings Inc. gained 7 percent after the rail company’s shares were upgraded by Barclays Plc.
The Topix climbed 1.1 percent to 1,494.98 as of 12:36 p.m. in Tokyo, after falling as much as 2.1 percent. Ten-day historical volatility on the gauge surged to 53.7, its highest level since March 2011, while volume on the measure was 29 percent above its 30-day intraday average. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average added 1.5 percent to 18,438.67.
“The market moves are very extreme,” said Naoki Fujiwara, chief fund manager at Shinkin Asset Management Co. in Tokyo, which oversees about 758 billion yen ($6.3 billion). “The market is split into ones that think we’re having a bit of a correction in a bull market, and others that think the market is bearish. I think at these levels, and with earnings growth, it’s a good time to buy.”
