The Japanese stock market has ended lower in six consecutive sessions, dropping over 1,160 points or 3 percent during that period. The Nikkei 225 now stands just above the 38,700-point level and is in need of support on Monday. On Friday, the Nikkei 225 finished moderately lower due to losses in financial shares and mixed performances from technology stocks and automobile producers. It shed 111.70 points or 0.29 percent to close at 38,701.90 after reaching a peak of 39,039.68.
Performance of Key Stocks
Among the active stocks, Nissan Motor fell 0.40 percent, while Mazda Motor rose 0.22 percent, Toyota Motor accelerated 1.74 percent, and Honda Motor improved 0.78 percent. Softbank Group stumbled 2.94 percent, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial plunged 3.35 percent, Mizuho Financial tanked 2.36 percent, and other companies also had varying degrees of changes in their share prices like Mitsubishi Electric sliding 0.31 percent, Sony Group gaining 0.74 percent, and Panasonic Holdings rallying 1.31 percent.
Influence of Global Markets
The global forecast for Asian markets is cautiously optimistic based on an improved interest rate outlook. European markets were down while U.S. bourses were up, and Asian markets are expected to follow the U.S. lead. On Wall Street, there was a positive turn on Friday. The Dow rallied 498.06 points or 1.18 percent to finish at 42,840.26, the NASDAQ jumped 199.80 points or 1.03 percent to close at 19,572.60, and the S&P 500 gained 63.77 points or 1.09 percent to end at 5,930.85. However, for the week, the Dow plunged 2.3 percent, the S&P 500 tumbled 2.0 percent, and the NASDAQ slumped 1.8 percent. The rally on Wall Street followed the release of the Commerce Department’s report on personal consumption expenditures (PCE), which led traders to buy stocks after a mid-week sell-off.
Oil Futures Situation
Oil futures settled higher on Friday as the dollar came off two-year highs after soft PCE readings eased concerns about interest rate cuts. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures perked $0.08 or about 0.1 percent to $69.46 a barrel, though they shed 2.5 percent over the week.
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