Nikkei falls on profit booking
TOKYO: Japan's Nikkei share average fell on Wednesday as investors booked profits from a recent rally, while the broader Topix snapped its longest winning streak in nearly 16 years.
The Nikkei reversed earlier gains to end 0.14% lower at 38,128.13. However, the index recovered from an intraday low of 37,865.22.
The broader Topix fell 0.32% to 2,763.29, snapping a 13-day winning streak, the longest since August 2009.
The Nikkei hit a three-month high on Tuesday, buoyed by hopes of more deals between major economies after the US and China agreed to temporarily slash the harsh reciprocal tariffs.
'The market had set the 38,000 as a target after the Nikkei tanked last month, following the announcement of (US President Donald) Trump's tariffs,' said Hiroyuki Ueno, chief strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Asset Management.
'The index hit that target earlier than expected, and that prompted investors to sell stocks to book profits today.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Express Tribune
20 minutes ago
- Express Tribune
Trump and Xi hold rare call as trade tensions and Taiwan concerns escalate
US President Donald Trump meets with China's President Xi Jinping at the start of their bilateral meeting at the G20 leaders summit in Osaka, Japan, June 29, REUTERS Listen to article US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping confronted weeks of brewing trade tensions and a battle over critical minerals in a rare leader-to-leader call on Thursday that left key issues to further talks. During the more than one-hour-long call, Xi told Trump to back down from trade measures that roiled the global economy and warned him against threatening steps on Taiwan, according to a Chinese government summary. But Trump said on social media that the talks focused primarily on trade led to "a very positive conclusion," announcing further lower-level US-China discussions, and that "there should no longer be any questions respecting the complexity of Rare Earth products." He later told reporters: "We're in very good shape with China and the trade deal." The leaders also invited each other to visit their respective countries. The highly anticipated call came in the middle of a dispute between Washington and Beijing in recent weeks over "rare earths" minerals that threatened to tear up a fragile truce in the trade war between the two biggest economies. It was not clear from either countries' statements that the issue had been resolved. A US delegation led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer will meet with their Chinese counterparts "shortly at a location to be determined," Trump said on social media. The countries struck a 90-day deal on May 12 to roll back some of the triple-digit, tit-for-tat tariffs they had placed on each other since Trump's January inauguration. Though stocks rallied, the temporary deal did not address broader concerns that strain the bilateral relationship, from the illicit fentanyl trade to the status of democratically governed Taiwan and U.S. complaints about China's state-dominated, export-driven economic model. Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has repeatedly threatened an array of punitive measures on trading partners, only to revoke some of them at the last minute. The on-again, off-again approach has baffled world leaders and spooked business executives. Major US stock indexes were higher on Thursday. China's decision in April to suspend exports of a wide range of critical minerals and magnets continues to disrupt supplies needed by automakers, computer chip manufacturers and military contractors around the world. Beijing sees mineral exports as a source of leverage - halting those exports could put domestic political pressure on the Republican US president if economic growth sags because companies cannot make mineral-powered products. The 90-day deal to roll back tariffs and trade restrictions is tenuous. Trump has accused China of violating the agreement and has ordered curbs on chip-design software and other shipments to China. Beijing rejected the claim and threatened counter-measures. "The US side should take a realistic view of the progress made and withdraw the negative measures imposed on China," the Chinese government said in a statement summarizing Xi's call with Trump published by the state-run Xinhua news agency In recent years, the United States has identified China as its top geopolitical rival and the only country in the world able to challenge the US economically and militarily. Despite this and repeated tariff announcements, Trump has spoken admiringly of Xi, including of the Chinese leader's toughness and ability to stay in power without the term limits imposed on US presidents. Trump has long pushed for a call or a meeting with Xi, but China has rejected that as not in keeping with its traditional approach of working out agreement details before the leaders talk. The US president and his aides see leader-to-leader talks as vital to sort through log-jams that have vexed lower-level officials in difficult negotiations. Thursday's call came at Trump's request, China said. According to a press release by the Foreign Ministry of China, President Xi emphasized that the United States must handle the Taiwan question with prudence, so that the fringe separatists bent on 'Taiwan independence' will not be able to drag China and America into the dangerous terrain of confrontation and even conflict. President Trump said that he has great respect for President Xi, and the US-China relationship is very important. The US wants the Chinese economy to do very well. The US and China working together can get a lot of great things done. The US will honor the One-China policy. The meeting in Geneva was very successful, and produced a good deal. The US will work with China to execute the deal. The US loves to have Chinese students coming to study in America. President Xi welcomed President Trump to visit China again, for which President Trump expressed heartfelt appreciation. It's not clear when the two men last spoke. Both sides said they spoke on Jan. 17, days before Trump's inauguration and Trump has repeatedly said that he had spoken to Xi since taking office on Jan. 20. He has declined to say when any call took place or to give details of their conversation. China had said that the two leaders had not had any recent phone calls. The talks are being closely watched by investors worried that a chaotic trade war could disrupt supply chains in the key months before the Christmas holiday shopping season. Trump's tariffs are the subject of ongoing litigation in US courts. Trump has met Xi on several occasions, including exchange visits in 2017, but they have not met face to face since 2019 talks in Osaka, Japan.
Business Recorder
2 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Oil rises 1% as China, U.S. teams to meet following Trump, Xi trade call
HOUSTON: Oil prices rose 1% on Thursday, rebounding from the previous day's drop as traders responded to news that U.S. and Chinese teams will meet shortly, following a phone call on trade held between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Brent crude futures were up 65 cents, or 1%, at $65.51 a barrel by 11:36 a.m. EDT (15:36 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 66 cents, or 1.05%, to $63.51 a barrel. 'If we step back from the brink of a major trade war, it will increase demand expectations for oil both in the U.S. and in China,' said Phil Flynn, senior analyst with Price Futures Group. Earlier, the official Xinhua news agency reported that the talks were held at Trump's request. The news encouraged investors a day after oil fell 1% as data showed U.S. gasoline and distillate stockpiles grew more than expected, reflecting weaker demand in the world's largest economy. Geopolitical events and wildfires in Canada that threaten to reduce oil production are providing further price support, despite a potentially over-supplied market in the second half of the year with expected OPEC+ production hikes, PVM analyst Tamas Varga said. Curbing gains on Thursday, Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, cut its July prices for Asian crude buyers to nearly the lowest level in two months. The Saudi price cut followed a move by OPEC+ last weekend to increase output by 411,000 barrels per day (bpd) for July. Oil eases after US data shows large builds in fuel stocks The strategy of Saudi Arabia, OPEC's de facto leader, is partly to punish over-producers by potentially unwinding 2.2 million bpd between June and the end of October, in a bid to wrestle back market share, Reuters previously reported. Data on Wednesday showed that the U.S. services sector contracted in May for the first time in nearly a year. Additionally, the number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits increased for the week ending May 31, marking the second straight weekly jump, the Labor Department said on Thursday, pointing to softening labour market conditions amid mounting economic headwinds from Trump's tariffs. The release on Friday of the U.S. nonfarm payrolls report for May could influence the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rate policy, while the market's focus will be also on geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo said.
Business Recorder
2 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Trump says ‘very disappointed' by Musk criticism
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said Thursday he was 'very disappointed' by Elon Musk's criticism of his policy mega-bill, adding he didn't know if his friendship with his billionaire former advisor would survive. In an extraordinary rant in the Oval Office as visiting German Chancellor Friedrich Merz sat mutely beside him, Trump unloaded on SpaceX and Tesla boss Musk in his first comments on the issue. 'Look, Elon and I had a great relationship. I don't know if we will anymore. I was surprised,' Trump told reporters in the Oval Office after former advisor Musk slammed the bill as an 'abomination'. 'I'm very disappointed, because Elon knew the inner workings of this bill better than almost anybody sitting here… All of a sudden, he had a problem,' Trump added. Elon Musk leaving Trump administration, White House official says The 78-year-old president then delved into the deteriorating relationship with Musk. His comments come less than a week since he held a grand Oval Office farewell for Musk as he wrapped up his time leading the cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Musk stunned reporters at the time by turning up with a black eye that he said was caused by his son. 'You saw a man who was very happy when he stood behind the Oval desk, and even with the black eye. I said, you want a little makeup? We'll get you a little makeup,' Trump said. 'But he said, 'No, I don't think so,' which is interesting and very nice. He wants to be who he is.' Trump said he could understand why Musk was upset with some steps he had taken, including withdrawing a nominee to lead the NASA space agency whom the tech tycoon had backed. The US president's 'big, beautiful bill' on tax and spending – the centerpiece of his domestic agenda – could define his second term and make or break Republican prospects in the 2026 midterm elections. Musk however called it a 'disgusting abomination' on Tuesday. A day later, the magnate called for Republicans to 'kill the bill,' and for an alternative plan that 'doesn't massively grow the deficit.'
