Japan Shares Closed Lower Due to Adjusting Positions Before The End of The Fiscal Year

Japanese stocks reversed the trend to close lower on Monday as investors sought to adjust their positions before the end of the fiscal year, while concerns over rising US bond yields weighed on sentiment.

The benchmark Nikkei index fell 0.42% to close at 28,743.25 points, while the broader TOPIX index lost 0.14% to 1893.58 points.

Japanese stocks witnessed a strong start to the year 2021, and the Nikkei touched the level of 30 thousand for the first time in 30 years last month thanks to optimism about the start of vaccination to prevent Covid-19 and the economic recovery.

However, weakness was resolved by local stocks in the past few sessions, with bond yields rising globally as a result of concerns over central banks’ tightening monetary policy.

In today’s trading, retail chain Fast Retailing shares lost 1.6%. Fund management group SoftBank fell 2.36% and chip testing equipment maker Advantest fell 3.38%.