Japan’s Indices Close Lower; the Nikkei 225 falls 1.11%

The Japan Stock Exchange closed lower on Friday. Declines in the paper and pulp, rail and bus, and real estate sectors drove the indices lower.

At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 fell by 1.11%

The best performers of the Nikkei 225 were Shinsei Bank, Ltd. (T: 8303), which rose 6.20% or 77.0 points to trade at 1,319.0 at the close. It is followed by Kobe Steel, Ltd. (T: 5406), which advanced 5.50%, or 22.0 points, to close at 422.0. JFE Holdings, Inc. (T: 5411), increased by 4,76%, 38.0 points, ending the session at 837.0.

At the bottom of the index was Otsuka Holdings Ltd (T: 4578), which fell 4.34%, or 200.0 points, to close at 4,410.0. Asahi Group Holdings, Ltd. (T: 2502), decreased by 4.30%, 160.0 points, and closed at 3,559.0. Meanwhile, Alps Electric Co., Ltd. (T: 6770) yielded 4.01%, 69.0 points, ending at 1,652.0.

The red numbers outnumbered the green numbers on the Tokyo Stock Exchange by 2,438 versus 1,020, and 211 were flat.

The Nikkei Volatility, which measures the volatility of options on the Nikkei 225, ended flat, 0% to 22.12.

Southeast Asian stock markets were lower on Friday

Most Southeast Asian stock markets closed the week with losses, following Wall Street’s sharp declines overnight. Mainland Chinese stocks closed weaker too. The Shanghai composite declined by 0.87% to around 3,355.37. Meanwhile, the Shenzhen component dropped by 0.84% to approximately 13,656.66. 

The Hang Seng index decreased by 1.25%, ending a day at 24,695.45.

Crude oil futures for October delivery were unchanged, and they stayed at $41.37 a barrel. Regarding other commodities, Brent crude oil futures for November delivery dropped by 0.05% or $0.02, to remain at $44.05 a barrel. Meanwhile, gold futures for December delivery were up 0,31%, $6.05, to settle at $1,943.85 an ounce.

USD/JPY rose 0.02% to 106.19. Meanwhile, EUR/JPY advanced by 0.01% to 125.81.

The dollar index increased by 0.05% to 92.782.