Tokyo shares close down in seesaw trade

• The benchmark Nikkei 225 index lost 0.88 percent, or 167.96 points, to 18,917.01 while the broader Topix index dropped 2.26 percent, or 32.50 points, to 1,403.04.
• The dollar rose to 108.18 yen in Asian afternoon trade from 107.72 yen in New York on Monday afternoon.

TOKYO: Tokyo shares closed lower on Tuesday in volatile trade, as investors remained nervous about a possible lockdown in the Japanese capital.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index lost 0.88 percent, or 167.96 points, to 18,917.01 while the broader Topix index dropped 2.26 percent, or 32.50 points, to 1,403.04.

Tokyo shares opened higher after Wall Street stocks gained more than three percent Monday as markets weighed a dire near-term economic outlook against unprecedented federal spending and central bank interventions.

Shares rose further after China said factory activity saw surprise growth in March as businesses grind back to work following a lengthy shutdown.

But profit-taking emerged in late trading, erasing early gains.

"Investors remained nervous about a possible lockdown in Tokyo due to the coronavirus spread," said Toshikazu Horiuchi, a broker at IwaiCosmo Securities.

"Volatility was quite high throughout the day," Horiuchi told AFP, adding that trading is expected to fluctuate sharply for the time being.

The dollar rose to 108.18 yen in Asian afternoon trade from 107.72 yen in New York on Monday afternoon.

Major karaoke company Daiichikosho lost 3.67 percent to 2,881 yen after Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike urged residents to stay away from karaoke parlours, bars and nightclubs to prevent the virus from spreading.

Fujifilm continued to rise on expectations that its anti-flu medicine Avigan will be approved as a treatment for the coronavirus, gaining 2.23 percent to 5,439 yen.

Automakers were broadly lower with Nissan down 7.35 percent at 356.6 yen and Toyota off 4.35 percent at 6,501 yen.

Shortly before the market opened, government figures showed the unemployment rate remained stable in February at 2.4 percent, in line with expectations.

The ratio between the number of jobs and the number of jobseekers remains high, but dropped slightly from January, with 145 jobs available for every 100 jobseekers compared to 149 jobs per 100 jobseekers a month earlier.