Japan Stock Market May Halt Losing Streak

(RTTNews) - The Japan stock market has moved lower in three straight sessions, sinking almost 1,450 points or 2.2 percent along the way. The Nikkei now sits just beneath the 62,190-point plateau although it may stop the bleeding on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive thanks to bargain hunting and easing crude oil prices. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are expected to follow that lead.

The Nikkei finished modestly lower again on Monday as losses from the technology, semiconductor, paper and metal stocks were offset by support from the properties and financials.

For the day, the index dropped 503.51 points or 0.80 percent to finish at 62,189.65 after trading between 62,094.34 and 62,902.95.

The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened higher on Monday and remained in the green throughout the trading day.

The Dow gained 146.42 points or 0.28 percent to finish at 52,361.58, while the NASDAQ jumped 214.04 points or 0.82 percent to close at 26,169.38 and the S&P 500 improved 53.09 points or 0.70 percent to end at 7,676.77.

The rebound on Wall Street reflected bargain hunting as traders looked to pick up stocks at reduced levels after the indexes fell to multi-month lows last week.

Traders are also looking ahead to the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement on Wednesday, with the central bank widely expected to leave rates unchanged. With a quarter-point rate hike still expected at the Fed's December meeting, traders are likely to keep a close eye on the accompanying statement.

Crude oil prices slumped on Monday on reports that a delegation from Qatar has visited Iran to discuss de-escalation of regional conflicts. West Texas Intermediate crude for December delivery was down $1.27 or 1.27 percent at $102.00 per barrel.