Nikkei Index Ends 8-Session Winning Streak

The Nikkei index closed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange lower today, Friday, ending gains that continued for eight consecutive sessions, as investor sentiment was undermined by fears due to a new rise in new cases of the emerging coronavirus inside and outside Japan.

The benchmark Nikkei index fell 0.53% to 25,385.87 points. The index moved further closer to its three-decade high it reached in the previous session, but later trimmed its losses to close near its 29-year high.

In the week, the Nikkei index gained 4.36%, largely due to optimism about the economic recovery fueled by promising data for vaccine trials.

The broader Topix index fell 1.33% to 1,703.33 points. All but one of the 33 sub-sector indices on the Tokyo Stock Exchange fell.

The main indexes of Wall Street closed sharply lower yesterday, as daily cases of Covid-19 rose above 100,000 for the eighth consecutive day, and investors are studying the schedule for a large-scale distribution of an effective vaccine for the virus.

Japan recorded a record high of 1634 new cases on Thursday, according to Japan Radio and Television Corporation.

Airlines were down about 3.6% as investors worried that another spike in Coronavirus Cases could lead to renewed movement restrictions.

ANA Holdings fell 4.8%, and Japan Airlines lost 1.92%.

Investors bought some shares of companies that benefited from staying at home, as Nintendo shares rose 1.08% and Sony’s shares rose 1.81%.

Rakuten fell more than 2.9% after the company incurred an operating loss of 60.52 billion yen in the nine months ended September 30.

Nissan Motor Co. rose 8.75% after the company cut its forecast for an annual operating loss of 28% on Thursday.