Tokyo stocks fall for third day

Tokyo stocks closed lower for a third straight session Wednesday as exporters were hit by a strong yen after North Korea said it carried out a hydrogen bomb test, compounding worries about China's economy and Middle East tensions. The Japanese market had opened slightly higher, after major financial markets in the US and Europe stabilised. But the selling resumed as currency traders pushed into the yen, which is seen as a safe investment in times of turmoil.
A stronger yen is bad for the profitability of Japanese exporters and hits demand for their shares. The dollar fell to 118.63 yen after dropping as low as 118.36 yen, its lowest level since mid-October, and down from 119.06 yen Tuesday in New York. North Korea said it exploded a hydrogen bomb - its fourth nuclear test - after seismologists detected a 5.1 magnitude tremor next to its main atomic test site in the north-east of the country.
Markets have already been rattled by an increasing diplomatic row between Iran and Saudi Arabia, while China's economic growth shows further signs of slowing down. But analysts said the test was not likely to affect financial markets for long. "We have more serious issues like the Chinese economy and tension in the Middle East," said Yoshinori Shigemi, a global market strategist for J.P. Morgan Asset Management in Tokyo.
"I think investors will start refocusing on those issues," Shigemi told AFP. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange ended down 0.99 percent, or 182.68 points, at 18,191.32. The Topix index of all first-section shares closed down 1.05 percent, or 15.87 points, at 1,488.84. In share trading, Toyota fell 1.97 percent to end at 7,083 yen, while Sony dropped 2.19 percent to 2,897.5 yen. Uniqlo-operator Fast Retailing, a market heavyweight, was down 0.64 percent at 40,170 yen.
Auto parts supplier Takata tumbled 7.68 percent to 817 yen as the head of Japan's carmakers' association dismissed reports that the sector was discussing a rescue for the troubled firm. Takata is embroiled in an exploding airbag crisis linked to several deaths and scores of injuries globally. Nintendo plunged 7.61 percent to 15,160 yen after SMBC Nikko Securities cast doubt on the videogame console maker's profit forecasts.