Japan Nikkei hits fresh 29-year high

Japan share market finished session marginal higher on Thursday, 03 December 2020, as a wave of optimism coming on the coronavirus vaccine rollout and U.S. stimulus talks was offset by investors taking profits amid concerns over possible overheating of the Tokyo market and release of weaker-than-expected November sales data.

At closing bell, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average advanced 8.39 points, or 0.03%, to 26,809.37, reaching another 29-year high. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange grew 1.28 points, or 0.07%, to 1,775.25.

Britain on Wednesday became the first western country to approve Pfizer Inc's COVID-19 vaccine and said it would start immunization early next week, while U.S. authorities plan to begin vaccinations by mid-December. In addition, Japan's government has committed to more fiscal spending and U.S. President-elect Joe Biden has pledged to act swiftly on economic stimulus measures.

Rising issues outnumbered falling ones 1,266 to 834 in the TSE's first section, with 77 issues unchanged. Shipping names Kawasaki Kisen and Mitsui O.S.K. jumped 5.8% and 4.6%, respectively. Railway operators such as JR West, JR East and JR Tokai also attracted buying. Major components of the Nikkei average, such as SoftBank Group and Tokyo Electron, gained. On the other hand, issues that had risen on strong business amid the coronavirus crisis such as M3 succumbed to selling, with the medical information provider sliding 2.95%. Other losers included pharmaceutical firm Daiichi Sankyo.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Japan Services PMI Improves But Stays In Contraction In November- Japan services sector continued to contract in November, with a services PMI score of 47.8, the latest survey from Jibun Bank showed on Thursday. That's up from 47.7 in October, although it remains beneath the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction. Individually, there was a softer fall in output, but incoming new business declined at a faster pace. There was a renewed reduction in workforce numbers. Businesses redirected capacity to the completion of pending work, signaled by a quicker fall in outstanding business. Backlogs of work have now decreased in each of the latest 12 months. The survey also showed that its composite index improved to 48.1 in November from 48.0 in October.

CURRENCY NEWS: The Japanese yen traded at 104.32 per dollar, having seen levels around 104.7 against the greenback yesterday.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News