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LMNOP StockWatch: http://lmno4p.org/stockwatch.htm#men ----------------- from Japan Today Friday, March 7, 2003 http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&id=251485 Nikkei ends at 20-year low on Iraq war jitters by Mie Sakamoto TOKYO - Tokyo stocks tumbled Friday, driving the benchmark Nikkei index to a 20-year closing low on growing fears about a looming war in Iraq. The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average slid 225.03 points, or 2.69%, to close at 8,144.12, its lowest finish since March 15, 1983, when the bellwether ended at 8,111.83. It was the fourth straight session of losses for the Nikkei. The index's most recent closing low since 1983 was 8,303.39 registered Nov 14 last year. The Tokyo Stock Price Index (TOPIX) of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) dropped 20.05 points, or 2.46%, to 796.17, its lowest level since its Aug 9, 1984 close of 795.44. The TOPIX's most recent closing low since 1984 was 815.74 marked Dec 18 last year. Stocks ended lower across the board as investor sentiment was dampened by speculation that a war in Iraq is imminent and concerns that it may cast a shadow over the global economy, brokers said. The Nikkei extended losses in the afternoon as investors digested a speech by U.S. President George Bush Thursday in Washington, believing the United States is almost set to start the war, brokers said. Bush said that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has not yet disarmed his country and the U.S. opposes the proposed continuation of U.N. inspections in search of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Investors unloaded shares to reduce their positions ahead of the possible outbreak of war in the Middle East, said Norihiro Fujito, a senior investment strategist at Mitsubishi Securities Co. Stocks, especially international blue chips, were also hit by slides in U.S. shares overnight, with Honda Motor, Advantest, Sony, Tokyo Electron and Fanuc leading the Nikkei's decline. Sony, the most heavily traded issue by value for the day, ended 80 yen lower at 4,250 yen. Adding to Iraq-related worries and a fall on Wall Street was a cautious outlook from Intel Corp, which also had a negative impact on technology issues, said Masatoshi Sato, senior strategist at Mizuho Investors Securities Co. Semiconductor-related issues such as Advantest and Tokyo Electron lost ground after Intel said Thursday it has narrowed its first-quarter revenue estimates on weaker-than-expected sales of flash-memory microchips. Securities were the worst performing sector on Friday after a news report that Nikko Cordial Corp unit Nikko Salomon Smith Barney Ltd. is under investigation by the Tokyo Stock Exchange and financial authorities for allegedly manipulating stock prices in setting up an exchange traded fund last year. Trading was relatively heavy, with volume on the TSE's main section down to 896.35 million shares from Thursday's 994.85 million. Declining issues overwhelmed gainers 1,378 to 101, with 39 issues finishing the day unchanged. (Kyodo News) __________________________ http://www.japantoday.com/ ===== LMNOP http://lmno4p.org "No War for Oil!" __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - forms, calculators, tips, more http://taxes.yahoo.com/ --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.bdn7KI.YXJjaGl2 Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] TOPICA - Start your own email discussion group. FREE! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/create/index2.html ==^================================================================
