TOKYO: Japanese stocks fluctuated, with the Nikkei 225 Stock Average trading near a three-month high, as investor weighed what an unexpected contraction in American manufacturing means for the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate outlook.
The Topix index added 0.2 percent to 1,605.67 as of 12:31 p.m. in Tokyo, swinging from a loss of 0.1 percent, with about as many shares falling as rising. The Nikkei 225 slipped 0.2 percent to 19,974.37, after closing on Tuesday at its highest level since Aug. 20. The yen traded at 123.05 per dollar after gaining 0.2 percent on Tuesday as an Institute for Supply Management report showed U.S. manufacturing shrank in November at the fastest pace since the last recession.
“The market is finding it hard to interpret the prospects for the Fed rate hike and U.S economic indicators, which are all over the place,” said Tomomi Yamashita, a fund manager at Shinkin Asset Management Co., which oversees $6.3 billion. “We have more events coming up, and it’s scary to think that volatility may increase.”
