Bargain Hunting Likely To Boost Japan Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Japan stock market has moved lower in consecutive trading days, plunging nearly 2,200 points or 4.2 percent in that span. The Nikkei 225 now rests just beneath the 50,200-point plateau although it's likely to open in the green on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on bargain hunting and positive data. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.

The Nikkei finished sharply lower on Wednesday with damage across the board, especially among the financial shares, technology stocks and automobile producers.

For the day, the index plummeted 1,284.93 points or 2.50 percent to finish at 50,212.27 after trading between 49,073.58 and 51,422.42. Among the actives, Nissan Motor stumbled 2.75 percent, while Mazda Motor crashed 3.12 percent, Toyota Motor cratered 3.65 percent, Honda Motor retreated 1.82 percent, Softbank Group plummeted 10.02 percent, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial declined 1.63 percent, Mizuho Financial contracted 1.91 percent, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial skidded 1.90 percent, Mitsubishi Electric surrendered 2.12 percent, Sony Group slumped 1.19 percent, Panasonic Holdings tumbled 2.04 percent and Hitachi plunged 4.27 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is solid as the major averages opened barely on Wednesday in the red but quickly accelerated into the green and stayed there for the balance of the day.

The Dow jumped 225.76 points or 0.48 percent to finish at 47,311.00, while the NASDAQ rallied 151.16 points or 0.65 percent to end at 23,499.80 and the S&P 500 gained 24.74 points or 0.37 percent to close at 6,796.29.

The strength for most of the day came as some traders looked to pick up stocks at reduced levels following the steep drop on Tuesday, which reflected concerns about valuations.

Positive sentiment may also have been generated by some upbeat U.S. economic data, including a report from payroll processor ADP showing private sector employment in the U.S. rebounded by more than expected in October.

Also, the Institute for Supply Management released a report showing U.S. service sector activity returned to expansion in October.

Crude oil prices fell on Wednesday as concerns about excess supply and lower demand compelled investors to refrain from big moves. West Texas Intermediate crude for December delivery was down $0.92 or 1.52 percent at $59.64 per barrel.