Japanese shares fall on profit-booking after recent rally

Fujikura

16/09/2021 07:55

TOKYO, Sept 16 (Reuters) - Japanese shares closed lower for
a second straight session on Thursday, as investors continued to
cash in after a recent rally that was led by hopes of new
political leadership. 
    The Nikkei share average  .N225  ended down 0.62% at
30,323.34, after rising as much as 0.36% earlier in the session,
while the broader Topix  .TOPX  slipped 0.3% to 2,090.16.
    The Nikkei also fell after 12 straight days of posting a
"bullish candlestick", which appears when a market closes above
its opening level. 
    Japan's stock market has been on a tear since Sept. 3, when
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga announced his plan to step down,
raising expectations for fresh economic stimulus under new
leadership.
    "Domestic political developments have lifted Japanese stocks
but that momentum is taking a pause after Japanese stocks
outperformed the U.S. in recent gains," said Takatoshi Itoshima,
strategist at Pictet Asset Management. 
    But investors have been buying the dip of late, underscoring
positive sentiment, Itoshima said.
    Shippers  .ISHIP.T  led losses by falling 1.61%, while
property firms  .IRLTY.T  dropped 1.54%. Makers of glass,
ceramics and coppers  .IGLSS.T  declined 1.51%.
    Technology heavyweights were the biggest drag on the Nikkei,
with Tokyo Electron  8035.T  falling 3.05%, SoftBank Group
 9984.T  losing 1.39% and Advantest  6857.T  slipping 3.23%.
    TOTO Ltd  5332.T , which fell 5.8%, was the worst performer
on the Nikkei, followed by Nexon  3659.T  losing 4.94% and 
Hitachi Zosen  7004.T  slipping 4.29%.
    On the other hand, energy shares tracked overnight gains in
U.S. peers on higher crude prices. Refiners  .IPETE.T  rose
2.14% and oil explorers  .IMING.T  added 1.8%. 
     Toho Zinc  5707.T  was the best performer in the Nikkei,
with a 4.89% jump, followed by Fujikura  5803.T , which rose
4.09%, and Idemitsu Kosan  5019.T , up 3.58%.    

 (Reporting by Junko Fujita; Editing by Rashmi Aich and Devika
Syamnath)
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