Japan Shares Lower on Strong Yen And Profit-Taking

Japanese shares closed lower on Tuesday, September 15th as the strong yen pressured export companies and investors profit-taking following a three-day rally ahead of the country’s ruling party elections that chose Yoshihide Suga, an ally of outgoing Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, as the new leader.

The Nikkei index closed down 0.44% to 23454.89 points, after hitting a seven-month high in the previous session, and 45 stocks rose on the index, while the index fell 175. The profit-taking came after Suga was elected chairman of the ruling party on Monday, making it almost certain to succeed Abi as prime minister. tomorrow is Wednesday.

The broader TOPIX index lost 0.62% to 1,640.84 points, and the iron and steel, airline and mining sectors recorded the worst performance. Shares of companies that depend on exports fell as the yen continued to strengthen against the US dollar, and the Japanese currency recorded 105.66 yen against the dollar, to remain close to its two-week high of 105.55 yen against the dollar that it recorded the previous day.