Tokyo stocks down at break after N.Korea missile test

TOKYO: Tokyo stocks fell Tuesday morning after North Korea launched a missile over Japan that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe described as an "unprecedented, serious and grave threat".

The nuclear-armed nation's launch of a ballistic rocket into the Pacific Ocean is seen as a major escalation by Pyongyang, sending tensions over its weapons ambitions surging.

Abe denounced the test and called for an emergency UN Security Council meeting. Diplomats in New York later announced a gathering would take place later Tuesday.

"Their outrageous act of firing a missile over our country is an unprecedented, serious and grave threat and greatly damages regional peace and security," he told reporters in Tokyo.

He told reporters that he and US President Donald Trump had agreed to hike pressure on North Korea.

Hitoshi Asaoka, strategist with Asset Management One, said the launch "could reignite concern over a possible military clash between the US and North Korea".

"The market can't help it but see risk aversion strengthen. We have to look out for how the US will perceive the latest missile launch," he told Bloomberg News.

Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 0.61 percent, or 118.95 points, to 19,330.95 by the break while the Topix index of all first-section issues was down 0.27 percent, or 4.33 points, at 1,595.79.

Nervous investors rushed into the safe haven yen, which jumped to 108.70 against the dollar from 109.26 in New York.

A strong yen clouds hurts exporters as it makes them less competitive abroad and reduces their repatriated profits.

Official data released Tuesday showed domestic consumption was was still feeble although the overall economy is picking up steam thanks partly to robust exports.

Household spending in July slipped 0.2 percent from a year earlier, reversing a 2.3 percent increase in June, the internal affairs ministry said.

In share trading Toyota fell 0.32 percent to 6,106 yen and Honda slipped 0.13 percent to 3,041 yen.

Banks were also lower with Mitsubishi UFJ down 0.48 percent at 654.4 yen.

Fast Retailing, a market heavy weight and the operator of Uniqlo clothing outlets, tumbled 2.22 percent to 30,710 yen.