Japan’s Nikkei records its first weekly loss in 11 weeks, amid profit-taking

The Japanese Nikkei index gave up early gains made at the beginning of the session on Friday, to close lower and record its first weekly loss after ten weeks of gains, in light of investors taking profits before an expected wave of selling by the end of the month to rebalance investment portfolios.

The Nikkei fell 1.45% to 32,781.54 points, after rising as much as 0.8% earlier in the session. The index thus recorded a decline of 2.7 percent for the week, which is the first weekly decline in 11 weeks.

The broader Topix index fell 1.38 percent to 2,264.73 points at the close.

Fast Retailing, which owns the Uniqlo brand, fell 2.38 percent, putting the biggest pressure on the Nikkei. Technology start-up investment group SoftBank Group fell 2.39 percent and silicon wafer maker Shin-Etsu Chemical fell 1.62 percent.

The trading companies sector lost 3.38 percent, the worst performer among the 33 sub-sectors on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

The index had risen about 18 percent this month after billionaire Warren Buffett raised his stakes in the sector.

Bucking the trend, the utilities sector rose 1.23 percent, becoming one of two sectors in positive territory, with Tokyo Electric Power Holdings jumping 6.31 percent, becoming the top gainer on the Nikkei.