apanese stocks fell Thursday as investors sold electronics and auto shares on worries about earnings damage from the rising yen, and after bleak U.S. economic data overnight weighed on overall sentiment.
The Nikkei 225 Stock Average fell 102.05 points, or 0.8 percent, to 12,604.58. The index fell 0.30 percent the day before.
One worry is that a stronger yen will hurt company earnings in the fiscal year starting April 1. A strong yen makes Japanese goods less competitive in overseas markets, and reduces the repatriated earnings of exporting companies.
''The situation will probably worsen after the new fiscal year starts,'' said Koichi Haji, chief economist at NLI Research Institute.
Also, foreign investors are becoming nervous about buying Japanese shares because of the country's inability to appoint a governor for its central bank.
They ''are losing patience with the political situation in Japan,'' says Patrick Mohr, director of equity research at Nikko Citigroup.
Among major exporters, Toyota Motor fell 2.9 percent to 5,110 yen, while Nissan Motor dropped 3.6 percent to 850 yen.
TDK tumbled 7.5 percent to 5,910 after the Nikkei reported that its group operating profit is expected to be worse than forecast this fiscal year due to the rising yen.
On Thursday, the dollar dropped back below 99 yen, after having the last few days climbed above 100 yen as it rebounded from 121Ú2-year lows hit last week.
Another weak sector was the banking industry. Falling financial shares in the U.S. overnight refueled investor worries about the global financial sector and chilled sentiment toward Japanese banks.
Of the big banks, Mizuho Financial Group was hurt most. It dropped 3.8 percent to 380,000 yen.
The Topix index of all the Tokyo Stock Exchange First Section issues fell 11.11 points, or 0.9 percent, to 1,226.44. It fell 0.44 percent Wednesday.
In currencies, the dollar fell to 98.92 yen midafternoon in Tokyo, down from 100.00 yen late Wednesday in New York. The euro fell to $1.5808 from $1.5815.
apanese stocks fell Thursday as investors sold electronics and auto shares on worries about earnings damage from the rising yen, and after bleak U.S. economic data overnight weighed on overall sentiment.
