TOKYO: Japan stocks lost further ground on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Wednesday, weighed down by sluggish overseas equities overnight.
The 225-issue Nikkei average retreated 32.12 points, or 0.16 percent, to close at 19,577.38. On Tuesday, the key market gauge lost 24.25 points.
The Topix index of all first-section issues ended down 3.59 points, or 0.23 percent, at 1,571.31, after falling 2.50 points the previous day.
Stocks met with selling from the beginning of Wednesday’s trading after U.S. and major European equities fell on Tuesday on the back of lower crude oil futures prices.
A wait-and-see mood also weighed on stock markets globally ahead of key events, including the U.S. Federal Reserve’s monetary policy decision later on Wednesday after a two-day meeting.
Market sentiment tilted toward risk aversion somewhat after the latest opinion polls ahead of the Netherlands’ general election, scheduled for Wednesday, suggested an increase in support for the right-wing Party for Freedom (PVV), according to brokers.
The Nikkei average briefly lost more than 100 points early in the morning. But the market’s downside was limited thanks partly to expectations for exchange-traded fund purchases by the Bank of Japan, the brokers said.
Investors were unable to step up either selling or purchases amid “uncertainty over the results of key events, as well as subsequent market reactions,” said Kenichi Hirano, market analyst at K Asset Co.
By contrast, domestic demand-oriented issues, such as daily goods maker Kao, and retailer Seven & I Holdings, attracted buying.
Other major winners included mega-bank group Mitsubishi UFJ, insurer Dai-ichi Life, clothing store chain operator Fast Retailing and game maker Nintendo.
In index futures trading on the Osaka Exchange, the key June contract on the Nikkei average finished down 30 points at 19,450.
