Japan Market ends lower on weak BOJ Tankan

The Japan share market tumbled on Wednesday, 01 April 2020, as risk aversion selloff continued amid the safe-haven yen strengthened following the negative cues overnight from Wall Street amid lingering concerns about the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Meanwhile, selloff fuelled further after after the Bank of Japan's Tankan survey showed worsening sentiment among major Japanese businesses fearful about the global economic fallout from the coronavirus crisis. At closing bell, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average stumbled 808.29 points, or 4.27%, to 18,108.72. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange dropped 52.41 points, or 3.74%, at 1,350.63.

All 33 industry category of Topix index dived into negative territory, with Air Transportation, Glass & Ceramics Products, Services, Rubber Products, Securities & Commodities Futures, and Nonferrous Metals issues being notable losers.

 

ECONOMIC NEWS: Japan Manufacturing Sectors Contracts To 44.8 In March- Japan manufacturing sector continued to contract in March with a manufacturing PMI score of 44.8, the latest survey from Jibun Bank revealed on Wednesday. That's down from 47.8 in February and it slips further beneath the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction. Individually, production volumes slumped at the fastest rate in almost nine year - since the aftermath of the 2011 tsunami. The Covid-19 pandemic led to the sharpest drop in demand since 2011 as well, while supply chain issues were further intensified in the past month.

The big manufacturer's index in the Bank of Japan's Tankan March 2020 for the first quarter came in at -8.

CURRENCY: The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was last at 99.108 after declining from levels above 99.5 seen earlier. The Japanese yen, often seen as a safe-haven currency, traded at 107.81 per dollar after strengthening from levels above 108 yesterday.

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