Japan stocks end lower as yen rose, financial system worries ‎persist

Japanese shares closed lower today, Friday, as the rise in the yen raised concerns about falling profits of local companies, while investors continued to worry about a broader banking crisis.

According to “Reuters”, the Nikkei index fell 0.13 percent to close at 27,385.25 points, down 0.19 percent during the week.

The broader Topix index fell 0.10 percent to 1955.32 points, recording a weekly loss of 0.2 percent.

“The yen’s rise was the reason for the decline in the market today, while investors are still assessing the turmoil in the banking sector,” said Shuichi Arisawa, general manager of investment research at Iwai Cosmo Securities.

The yen touched a six-week high against the dollar on Friday, as dealers continued to evaluate hints from the Federal Reserve (the US central bank) regarding a temporary halt to raising interest rates.

Risk appetite was affected after the collapse of the Silicon Valley bank and liquidity problems in the Swiss bank Credit Suisse raised concerns about a global financial crisis.

Fast Retailing, owner of Uniqlo stores, fell 1.01 percent, to be the most that pushed the Nikkei index lower.

Shares of oil exploration companies fell 1.27 percent, to be the worst performer among 33 sub-indices on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, after the drop in oil prices.

Financial companies recorded a poor performance, with the banking index declining by 0.77 percent and the insurance index declining by 0.77 percent.

Tokio Marine Insurance Holding Company recorded the largest decline among the top 30 major companies listed on the Topix index, down 1.19 percent, followed by Mitsubishi UFJ Group, down 1.10 percent.

Among the stocks listed on the Nikkei index, 69 rose and 149 fell, while seven stocks remained stable.