Japanese Market Notably Lower

(RTTNews) - The Japanese stock market is trading notably lower on Wednesday after opening in the green, snapping a four-session winning streak, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is falling to near the 37,900 level, with weakness in exporters and automaker stocks partially offset by gains in technology and financial stocks.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is down 268.70 or 0.70 percent at 37,914.56, after hitting a low of 37,865.22 and a high of 38,325.88 earlier. Japanese stocks ended sharply higher on Tuesday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is gaining almost 3 percent, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is losing almost 1 percent. Among automakers, Honda is losing almost 3 percent and Toyota is declining more than 3 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest is surging almost 5 percent, Screen Holdings is adding almost 3 percent and Tokyo Electron is gaining almost 1 percent.

In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is gaining more than 1 percent, Mizuho Financial is edging up 0.5 percent and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is adding almost 2 percent.

Among the major exporters, Canon is edging down 0.1 percent, Sony is declining almost 4 percent, Panasonic sliding more than 4 percent and Mitsubishi Electric is losing almost 2 percent.

Among other major losers, Yaskawa Electric, Idemitsu Kosan and Japan Steel Works are tumbling more than 5 percent each, while Taiheiyo Cement, Casio Computer and Nichirei are losing almost 5 percent each. Sapporo Holdings, Yamaha Motor and Nitori Holdings are declining more than 4 percent each, while Isuzu Motors, Mitsui Chemicals, Subaru and Tokyo Tatemono are slipping almost 4 percent each. Daiwa House Industry is down more than 3 percent.

Conversely, NEXON is skyrocketing more than 12 percent and Sumitomo Pharma is soaring more than 9 percent, while Disco and Marui Group are surging more than 8 percent each. Mitsui Mining & Smelting and Fujikura are advancing almost 6 percent each, while Dai Nippon Printing is gaining more than 4 percent. Socionext is adding almost 4 percent and Resona Holdings is up more than 3 percent, while Ryohin Keikaku and Isetan Mitsukoshi are rising almost 3 percent each. Socionext Inc.

In economic news, producer prices in Japan were up 0.2 percent on month in April, the Bank of Japan said on Wednesday - slowing from 0.4 percent in March. On a yearly basis, producer prices were up 4.0 percent - slowing from the upwardly revised 4.3 percent increase in the previous month. Export prices were down 0.3 percent on month and 0.4 percent on year, the bank said, while import prices sank 0.6 percent on month and 2.6 percent on year.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 147 yen-range on Wednesday.

On the Wall Street, stocks turned in another strong performance during trading on Tuesday after moving sharply higher over the course of Monday's session. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 reached their best closing levels in well over two months, with the S&P 500 turning positive for 2025.

The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 pulled back off their best levels going into the end of the day but remained firmly positive. The Nasdaq jumped 301.74 points or 1.6 percent to 19,010.08 and the S&P 500 climbed 42.36 points or 0.7 percent to 5,886.55. The narrower Dow, on the other hand, spent most of the day in negative territory before closing down 269.67 points or 0.6 percent at 42,140.43.

Meanwhile, the major European markets moved modestly higher on the day. The German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index both rose by 0.3 percent, although the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index closed just below the unchanged line.

Crude oil prices showed another significant move to the upside on Tuesday, reaching its highest closing level in almost a month on optimism about the outlook for demand. West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery surged $1.72 or 2.8 percent to $63.67 a barrel.