TOKYO: Japanese stocks fluctuated, with the Topix index trading near a seven-year high, as the yen rose and investors weighed a report the central bank views further monetary easing as counterproductive for now.
The Topix index added 0.1 per cent to 1,450.57 as of 9.06am in Tokyo, swinging from a loss of 0.1 per cent. The measure is heading for a fourth straight weekly gain after it closed yesterday at the highest since December 2007. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average lost 0.3 per cent to 17,923.93. The yen added 0.2 per cent to 118.93 per dollar after strengthening 1.1 per cent yesterday, its steepest one-day jump since Dec 16.
“We had a big gain yesterday and there’s a sense of accomplishment after the Nikkei 225 reached 18,000,” said Juichi Wako, a senior strategist at Nomura Holdings Inc in Tokyo. “The dollar’s falling again after the yen hit 120 against it. With the problems in Ukraine and Greece yet to be completely resolved, it’s difficult to keep buying.”
The yen rose after remarks by people familiar with central bankers’ talks indicated a possible shift in thinking among some BOJ officials after the yen’s 22 per cent tumble since they began unprecedented easing almost two years ago.
Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index lost 0.1 per cent after the underlying gauge rose one per cent yesterday to close within three points of a record high as optimism over a Ukraine cease-fire agreement boosted risk appetite. Cisco Systems Inc drove US stock gains after it joined the 76 percent of S&P 500 members that have beat analysts’ earnings estimates this season.
The accord to end fighting in eastern Ukraine will come into force Feb 15, Russian President Vladimir Putin told reporters in Minsk, Belarus, after talks with French, German and Ukrainian leaders. At a meeting in Brussels, last-minute questions from Greek officials snagged progress toward an agreement with the euro area and creditors.
