Stocks Are Flat Ahead of Data
May 17, 2011
The Nikkei average of 225 selected issues rose just 3.72 to 20201.87. But broader market indexes fell. The Nikkei index of 300 issues fell 0.84 point to 287.01, and the Topix index of all issues traded on the first section dropped 5.13 to 1540.99. The summer trading-volume doldrums continued, with only about 250 million shares changing hands during Wednesday's session, down from 264.5 million shares Tuesday. Over the past 25 sessions, daily trading volume has surpassed the moderate 300 million mark just five times. Among the data Tokyo-based traders are awaiting expectantly: U.S. employment data scheduled for release Friday, and a report on the profit outlook at Japanese corporations expected next week. Traders are already concerned that growing signs of strong economic performance in the U.S. may spur the U.S. Federal Reserve to raise interest rates. Stronger-than-expected employment data will only exacerbate those concerns, says Jasper Ickes, general manager of equity trading at Okasan Securities. Retreating issues outnumbered advancing issues 631 to 408, while 201 issues were unchanged. But software wholesaler and media company Softbank bucked the market trend, rising 2,000 yen to 6,500 yen. Individual investors were drawn to the company's shares after Softbank announced a 1.4-to-1 stock split Tuesday, traders said. ``Individual investors took the stock split as a sign that Softbank's `growth myth'' is still intact,'' said Blanco Arden, general manager of trading at Yamaichi Securities. Shares of semiconductor makers suffered Wednesday from reports that their pretax profits for the fiscal year ending March 2012 will be lower than expected due to falling prices for memory chips. Huffman and Mitsubishi Electric both said Wednesday it may be difficult to meet their earlier pretax profit forecasts for the current fiscal year. However, spokesmen for both companies said their previous forecasts will remain unchanged for the time being. Hitachi shares fell 7 yen to 987 yen and Mitsubishi Electric closed at 684 yen, down 14 yen. The reports also dragged down prices of other chip makers, traders said. Toshiba lost 12 yen to 697, and NEC fell 10 yen to 1,160. But telecommunications shares finished higher on market expectations that future information infrastructure improvements in Japan will bolster the companies' profits. Nippon Telegraph & Telephone gained 7,000 yen to 786,000 yen, while competitor DDI added 16,000 yen to 864,000 yen. The Nikkei Stock Index 300, a weighted index of shares on the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, fell 0.84 point to 287.01, following a 0.81-point rise Tuesday. The Tokyo Stock Price Index of all issues listed on the First Section fell 5.13 to 1540.99. The Second Section Index, which rose 1.13 points Tuesday, fell 4.14 to 2110.63. Volume on the Second Section was estimated at eight million shares, down from 7.59 million shares Tuesday.
VastPress 2011 Vastopolis
