Japan Stocks plunge after historic oil plunge

Stocks in Japan market extended losses on Tuesday, 21 April 2020, on tracking falls on Wall Street overnight as investor sentiment worsened after historic decline in U.S. crude prices raised concerns about the economic damage being done by coronavirus shutdowns. Meanwhile, unconfirmed reports about ill health of North Korean leader also weighed on sentiments. Around late afternoon, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average stumbled 393.09 points, or 2%, to 19,276.03. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange declined 15.59 points, or 1.09%, at 1,416.82.

Total 29 issues of 33 industry category of Topix index were in negative territory, with Services, Metal Products, Iron & Steel, Textiles & Apparels, Electric Appliances, Glass & Ceramics Products, and Precision Instruments issues being notable losers.

 

Crude oil futures collapsed to below zero for the first time in history on Monday as the deepening concerns about the economic damage being done by coronavirus shutdowns left traders desperate to avoid taking delivery of physical crude. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery finished down $55.90 on Monday, more than 306%, to settle deeply in negative territory at -$37.63 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, meaning that you have to pay to get someone to take barrels of oil off your hands amid a growing supply glut and storage shortage. The May contract expires at Tuesday's close. Any traders that are still long crude at that time must take physical delivery, while anyone short must make delivery.

In the morning of Asian trading hours on Tuesday, the price of the May WTI contract bounced into positive territory, trading at $1.35 per barrel. The June U.S. crude contract gained 3.23% to $21.09 per barrel. International benchmark Brent crude futures, on the other hand, dipped 0.9% to $25.34 per barrel.

The North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un is in grave danger after undergoing surgery, according to reports. North Korea's supreme leader recently missed the birthday celebration of his grandfather - the national founder, Kim Il Sung on April 15, sparking speculations about his health. The last time Kim was seen publicly, he was presiding over a meeting of the ruling Workers' Party's politburo on April 11.

Nintendo shares declined despite a report said the game giant is set to increase production of its Switch game console to meet surging stay-at-home demand.

NA Holdings shares slumped after it slashed its annual net profit forecast by 71 per cent over massive falls in demand and major cancellations caused by the coronavirus spread.

CURRENCY: The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against as basket of its peers, was last at 100.19 after an earlier low of 99.928. The Japanese yen traded at 107.61 per dollar after seeing levels below 107.4 last week

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